Cat and Mouse
by AnaP318
Summary: During her first week at her new job in Washington, Kate is assigned to the case of a lifetime. Is fate finally giving her the break she needs, or will this case end up being her last?
1. Chapter 1

"You're going to be great, Kate," Castle said affectionately, as Kate stood in the mirror looking at her reflection uncertainly.

"Thanks," she whispered as she turned and took the cup of espresso he offered. "What time is your flight leaving?"

"Not until around 1." Kate nodded and tried to swallow around the lump currently lodged in her throat. It had been one month since she received the job offer that had changed her life and one month since she accepted the proposal of her boyfriend and partner. Now, on the verge of her first day as a federal agent, she was starting to doubt her decision.

It wasn't the first time she had experienced doubts. When she had to tell the boys, the thought of leaving behind her second family was almost enough to change her mind. When she handed her landlord the keys to her apartment, she had to hold back tears. When she hugged her dad goodbye, she secretly cried for several hours. The one saving grace was that she hadn't had to say goodbye to Castle yet. He had helped her pack and then drove down with her to help her get settled. With the release of _Deadly Heat_, however, he had commitments back in New York. In a few minutes, she was going to have to head to work, and it was going to be time to say goodbye.

"I'm nervous," she admitted. "It took me so long to establish myself as someone who deserved respect, and as a woman in a police department as large as the NYPD, it wasn't easy. Now, I feel like I'm starting all over again."

"But this is what you want, right?" Over the past month, Castle had gotten more than a few mixed signals. The afternoon he proposed, Beckett had initially said no. Heartbroken, he had prepared to walk away from her forever, until she said that it wasn't no – it was not yet. There was too much distance between them to start a life together, and when he considered her words, he knew she was right. After holing up in her apartment for a long weekend, however, they hashed out everything and realized that it was time to stop stalling. Castle finally got his yes, and Beckett decided it was time to move on professionally. Since then, she had moved forward with a drive that was uniquely Beckett – she just didn't seem happy about what she was doing.

"It is," Kate said with forced conviction. "It will be a chance to do something more." A chance to do something more. That was the phrase Beckett had been clinging to since Castle first found out about her secret job interview. It wasn't "this is what I want" or even "this is a wonderful opportunity." Instead, she kept looking at it in terms of what she'd be able to do for others, which was wonderfully altruistic, but not necessarily the key to happiness.

"Don't you have to be there at 9?" Castle asked finally glancing at the clock on the dresser. It was nearly 8:15. Even though she lived close, she'd need to leave now if she had any prayer of making it to Pennsylvania Avenue on time.

"Yeah," she said, the wobble in her voice not going unnoticed.

"It's only a week, Kate." The press tour would be over in a week, and then, Rick would be able to come back to Washington. He wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do with himself, though. He had spent enough time on the beat with Beckett to have enough information for 100 Nikki Heat books. But his drive to write about Nikki had faltered in the days since their partnership ended. There was always Derrick Storm, but at the moment, writing about Storm had pretty much lost its appeal too. "I'll be back before you know it."

"I know," Kate said, schooling her features and putting on a brave face. "It's just going to be hard. You know, without my partner."

"You'll be fine. You solved hundreds of cases before I came along. I just hope the Justice Department realizes how lucky they are to have you on their team."

In spite of everything Kate had put him through, Castle's faith in her was unwavering and a little staggering. "I love you," she said as she pulled him in for a kiss.

"I love you, too. Now, seriously, go to work. Spies can't be late." She rolled her eyes at him – only Castle – but greatly appreciated his attempt at keeping the situation light.

"You've got my spare key?"

"Right here," he said with a crooked smile, holding up the key chain.

"Good. Don't forget to lock up my apartment or I'll be forced to kill you." With that last little comment, Kate headed out the door to grab a cab. As soon as the door closed behind her, Castle's face fell as he took a deep breath. Despite his assurances, he couldn't help but feel like Kate was moving on without him.

"Agent Beckett," Stack greeted from his perch behind the security desk once she entered the Office of the U.S. Justice Department, "welcome."

As much as she tried to play it cool, Kate couldn't help marveling at both the sheer size and beauty of her new workplace and the sound of her new title.

"Thank you," she said with a small smile.

"She's with me," Stack said to the woman manning the security desk. "We'll get you your own ID badge sometime today. How does it feel to be joining the most elite detective team in the country?"

"Surreal," Kate answered honestly.

"I felt the same way. The novelty will wear off soon enough, though. Trust me."

Kate followed Stack to the ninth floor, which housed the Attorney General's office. Instead of directing her to any one of the many doors located in the long hallway, he took her to the end of the hall, flipped up a small piece of wood paneling and keyed in a code on a number pad in the wall. Before she had a chance to say anything, the wall parted, leading to an expansive work space filled with people milling about, going through their everyday routines. The space reminded her of the bullpen, except it was much larger and featured all sorts of gadgets that Kate couldn't even begin to describe. It was very similar to both the makeshift war room Agent Shaw had constructed and the CIA headquarters where she and Castle had nearly lost their lives at the hands of former KGB spy Sophia Turner. "You'll get your own code to the floor this afternoon," Stack continued, interrupting her internal musings."The Attorney General wants to meet with you first." His comment made Kate feel like she was on probation, which didn't set too well. With the security clearance she was being given, though, it would only make sense that they'd want to investigate her on-the-job skills more thoroughly before they turned over the keys to the palace.

"We have the most sophisticated investigative and defense software available," Stack explained as he continued her tour. "Our equipment easily rivals what they have at Langley." Kate nodded along as they walked, her heart sinking a little when she thought about Castle and how excited he would be if he saw all of these toys. It hurt that she wouldn't be able to share this with him.

"And here's your desk," Stack announced as they made their way to the far end of the space. There were several rows of desks lined up like you'd expect in any normal office setting. On the far left desk, a small paperweight reading 'Agent Beckett' sat waiting for her. "I'll give you a few minutes to get settled. The Attorney General would like to meet with you at 10:30." A glance at her father's watch revealed that she had over an hour to get acclimated to her new surroundings. She had brought her usual duffel bag to work, and inside, she had packed her elephants, some workout clothes, a change of work clothes and her stick man, along with the pens she preferred, file folders and other miscellaneous office supplies.

After setting up her desk, Beckett still had 45 minutes to spare, and the minutes ticked by so slowly it was painful. Everyone was obviously busy working on various cases, and it killed her to be out of the loop. She hadn't signed up for a desk job, but she knew she'd have to be patient and pay her dues before they let her loose in the field. At 10:30, Kate got up and made her way to Stack, who directed her to the Attorney General's office. He was on a call, so his administrative assistant got Beckett a bottle of water and started chatting with her about how much she loved working in Washington. Kate was so nervous she felt like she was going to be sick, so polite conversation wasn't on her list of priorities. Still, she managed a small smile for the girl who couldn't have been older than 20.

At 10:55, the door to the office swung open and Beckett was ushered inside. For the next two hours, she received an overwhelming amount of information that would have been difficult to keep up with even if that was her only focus. At the same time, she was also being grilled about her closure rates, her record as both a cop and a detective, and her work style, people skills and various other peculiarities. When she was finally finished with the meeting, she felt equal parts exhausted and confused.

"He just likes to intimidate," Stack assured as Kate came out of his office looking a little dazed.

"He is intimidating," Beckett admitted. "Anyway, what now?"

"It's 1:00 so you should grab some lunch. When you get back, you'll have to check in with the girls in Human Resources. They have a variety of forms you'll need to fill out."

The way Stack said "girls" rankled her, but she did her best to hide it. She followed him back into what she now knew was referred to as the tech floor and grabbed her bag. The space was mostly empty now that everyone had gone to lunch, and Kate finally felt herself feeling a little more at ease. She couldn't wait until she got her first case.

It was nearing 6:30 by the time Kate got home. Without her writer, her apartment felt empty and lonely. After changing her clothes and sitting on the couch for a few minutes, she became restless, so she changed into running gear and hit the pavement. Five miles and a stop for Chinese takeout later, she was feeling much better. She plated her food, poured herself a generous serving of red wine and flipped on the television before sitting down. As she none-to-daintily devoured her food, she wasn't paying too much attention to the news, using it mostly for background noise. When she heard a familiar name, however, she nearly choked.

"We received word today that Senator William Bracken (D-NY) is one of several senators putting in an early bid for the November 2016 Presidential Election," the anchor read with a smile on her face. "While it is still very early in the race, with many potential candidates yet to announce interest, Bracken, who has worked closely with the Vice President and was instrumental in the passing of last quarter's extremely popular environmental bill, is the current frontrunner for the Democratic Party, which hopes to maintain the White House in 2016." Kate knew this was coming eventually, but it still caught her off guard. Fighting a wave of tears, she reached for her cell phone at the same time it started ringing.

"Hi," Kate answered, sounding close to tears. "Did your plane just get in?"

"About 45 minutes ago – I just got back to the loft. I take it from the sound of your voice that you've already seen the news."

"I am watching it right now."

"I'm so sorry, Kate."

"No, don't be sorry. 2016 is three years away. I'm confident he'll make another mistake, and when he does, I'll be ready."

"Kate..." Castle started before thinking better of it. She was upset, and trying to reason with her now would only lead to a fight. With that thought lingering, the pair changed to more upbeat topics, including the details of Castle's press tour schedule, which he had just received. Kate continued to sip her wine, and the conversation with Castle was doing wonders to cheer her, like it always did. She was starting to relax, starting to think that it really would be okay, as she felt herself melt further into the sofa.

On the other side of town, a man eating a hamburger and drinking a beer watched a live video feed of a woman in running clothes laying on her couch while she talked to her boyfriend. It was the kind of routine surveillance work that Everett Michaels detested, but his client paid well, so he couldn't complain. He was just starting to zone out when the woman unknowingly muttered a game-changing sentence. Smiling to himself, Michaels grabbed his phone and pressed one on his speed dial. His payment was about to double.

"Yes?" an irritated voice on the other side of the line questioned.

"I have some news."

"Well?"

After waiting a few moments for the suspense to build, Michaels whispered the six words that he knew his boss had secretly been waiting to hear: "Kate Beckett is still a threat."


	2. Chapter 2

Senator William Bracken very rarely experienced a crisis of morality. He had more blood on his hands than some of the most notorious mobsters, and yet, he could easily reason that what he did made his city safer, cleaner. He never felt guilty – after all, you don't get one step away from being named President without getting a little dirt on your hands. This issue with Kate Beckett was the one exception. She was a dangerous threat; what she knew had the power to destroy him and everything he had built. If it had been anyone else, he would have tried once more to silence her, but she had saved his life. So, despite himself, he felt like he owed her something. In the beginning, he was going to pay that debt by granting her the freedom to live her life. He would check in on her from time to time – something that would be much easier to do now that she was based in Washington – and as long as he had reason to believe she had moved on from her mother's murder, she would be safe. All that changed, however, the night he learned that she was secretly lying in wait.

"What do you want to do, Boss?" Michaels asked as Senator Bracken weighed his options. He could take her out easily in the confines of her apartment, but that would raise questions. Her associates in New York, as well as her partner - who would eventually need to be silenced himself - would immediately suspect him.

"Do you still have eyes and ears within the Attorney General's office?"

"Of course."

"Good."

Beckett woke the next morning with a start. As she looked around her bedroom, she was met with an unfamiliar and seemingly unfounded wave of foreboding. Doing her best to shake it off, she performed her morning ritual of yoga and coffee before heading to work. Stack had promised her first training assignment would be coming within the week, and she was excited to get the details.

"Good morning," Beckett said to Stack as she headed to her desk. A stack of training materials, along with a booklet of rules and regulations, had magically appeared on her desk overnight, and Kate barely stifled her groan; she hated desk work. As she started on the unpleasant task before her, Kate watched the hustle and bustle of the day. No one on her new task force was very chatty, and Beckett realized that she didn't even know the names of most of her new team members, which was a far cry from the Twelfth where everyone was basically family. It didn't particularly bother her, though; she wasn't much for forced pleasantries and introductions.

"Stack, did you hear about the new assignment?" Beckett tried her best not to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help herself from listening in to the conversation two desks over. Maybe this would be her training case.

"No. What's going on?" Stack asked, expecting news about a national breaking story.

"A Senator is being investigated for misappropriation of funds."

"And?" Stack asked, not quite sure why this was so important. "Those cases are a dime a dozen."

"It's going to take a turn, I just know it."

"And how could you possibly know that?"

"The Senator in question just announced his bid for President last night." Kate had taken a sip from her water bottle right as this news was revealed and once again nearly choked. Stack was now staring at her like she had grown three heads, and he looked more than a little disgusted.

"Sorry," Kate said sheepishly. "Swallowed wrong."

With a shake of his head, Stack turned back to the man he was speaking with. "Bracken?"

"Yeah."

"Huh. I still think it sounds like a dead-end case." Stack went back to work, while his associate continued to spread the word around the tech floor. Everyone else was treating the case as nothing more than child's play, but Kate could barely tamp down her enthusiasm. This was it. She had to be on this task force.

Thirty minutes passed, followed by an hour and then two. Keeping focus had never been an issue for Beckett before, but now, she found herself re-reading the same sentence over and over again without comprehending a word. Her heart was beating so fast she feared it was about to beat right out of her chest as she anxiously waited for further news.

"Well, well, Stack, you're hiding the pretty ones over here. I can see why he recruited you." With a scowl on her face, Kate looked up to find a tall man with dark hair and dark eyes leaning over her desk. He was handsome, she'd give him that. Too bad she was going to have to scar that pretty face with her fist.

"Excuse me?" she asked rising to her feet. Beckett didn't feel like starting a confrontation, but if she'd learned anything about standing her ground in a male-oriented position, it was that she would set a dangerous precedent if she put up with heckling.

"Woah, woah, calm down. I'm just messing with my boy here. I'm Agent Jacob Daniels. You must be Agent Beckett." He extended his hand, but Kate ignored him, dropping unceremoniously back into her desk chair.

"Smooth, Daniels," Stack teased as he got up to refill his mug.

"Look," Daniels said, "I have been told I come on a little strongly."

"Ya think?" Kate asked sarcastically.

"Can we just start over?"

"Fine. Kate Beckett," she said, finally accepting his handshake.

"We're going to be working together on an upcoming assignment," Daniels said. "I just received my orders. I am going to be your training partner." At this, Kate's interest piqued.

"What's the assignment?" she asked, trying not to sound overly eager.

"We're going to be investigating Senator William Bracken for misappropriation of funds." For Kate, time seemed to stop as soon as she made sense of Daniels's words. A whirlwind of emotions rushed through her as she realized the universe had finally delivered the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity she had been awaiting. If she played her cards right, she'd finally have justice for her mother and for Roy Montgomery. Daniels continued to talk, but Kate had already lost track of their conversation. There were times when she feared this day would never come, and even though it hurt, she had made peace with that possibility. Now, she wouldn't have to sit idly by and watch as Bracken rose to power. The thought was enough to bring a few embarrassing, surprising tears to her eyes. "Are you okay?" Daniels asked when he saw Kate's suspiciously watery eyes.

"I'm fine. My contacts are bothering me," Kate lied, brushing off the tears threatening to spill over.

"Oh, I have some drops at my desk..."

"No, thanks. I'm fine."

"Okay, well, I'm supposed to be meeting with the Attorney General in a half hour to receive more information. How about we plan to meet after lunch for a debrief?"

"That will work," she said, schooling her features.

"Great. Nice to have met you, Agent Beckett."

Later that afternoon, as Kate sat through her debriefing with Agent Daniels, she was sure she must be dreaming. After all, how many times did she finally arrive at this moment only to wake up at the last second? But she wasn't sleeping. She was wide awake. And she was ready. The charges against Bracken were extensive and included misappropriating funds, accepting bribes and using force as a means to procure funding. If he was found guilty, he would not only be forced out of public office, but he'd be facing at least 20 years' jail time. She prayed that during their investigation they would also unearth the needed evidence to charge Bracken with murder.

"This is really surprising," Kate lied. "I've always been a fan."

"I heard you saved his life last year."

"Mmm. Just doing my job," Beckett mumbled in an attempt to keep the focus away from herself. "Where is the evidence file? I don't see it here."

"We actually don't have any solid evidence yet. We received an anonymous tip this morning, so we're going to have to do some legwork."

"Oh," Kate said, surprised and a little disappointed. She thought it was pretty much a done deal, and they currently had nothing more than a tip. "I assume you already have a plan, right?"

"I've already ordered a wire tap on the Senator's phone and had an associate place audio surveillance devices both in his campaign and Senate offices. Now, we wait."

"That's it?"

"That's it." As the pair headed back towards her desk, Kate couldn't help feeling a little uneasy. The shock and novelty of her new assignment had worn off, and now, as she more rationally considered the evidence, doubts were starting to creep in. What were the odds that her first training assignment would involve Bracken?

Kate was so lost in her own thoughts she didn't see Daniels approaching with two cups of coffee. As he sat her mug down next to her, she startled so badly her gasp was noticeable by everyone in the immediate vicinity. "Jumpy much?" Daniels asked, looking at her like she was an unpredictable wild animal that might bolt or attack at any second.

"Sorry, I was just lost in thought," she said as she took a sip. "Is it normal for the office to pay so much attention to anonymous tips? I bet around here they're an everyday occurrence. You couldn't very well look into them all."

"Some we take more seriously than others," Daniels shrugged. "This task force was developed for several reasons, one of which includes making sure that politicians live up to the oaths they take when they enter public office. I know that most of your experience with us so far has been in the realm of murder and espionage, but there's more to it than that. We assist with all types of complicated cases: homicides, abductions, large-scale white collar theft, security threats, and occasionally, that includes doing a little checking on our own government. Listen, it's getting late. What do you say we call it a night? The feeds are being monitored around the clock, and if we get any hits, I will give you a call."

"Sounds great," Kate said with a forced smile. By the time Kate arrived at her apartment an hour later, she had had plenty of time to think about Bracken, her mom's murder, Montgomery's death and her shooting, and her anxiety was threatening to bubble over. Though she had basically recovered from her PTSD, there were still certain things that could trigger minor anxiety. She wasn't feeling minor anxiety tonight, though. Her hands were shaking as she poured herself a glass of wine, and she feared she was on the verge of a major panic attack. It was the first time in nearly two years she had felt this way, and the fact that she was alone made it worse.

_Get a grip, Kate. You're okay,_ she thought to herself as she tried to control her breathing. Her chest felt tight and her breathing labored as she struggled to stay calm. One by one, she stretched out her fingers to prevent herself from wringing her hands together. She could beat this. She had done it once before.

Beckett was finally starting to calm down when her phone rang. Like clockwork, Castle was finished for the day with his Black Pawn responsibilities and wanted to chat. "Hi," she said, trying to infuse her voice with false cheer.

"Hi. How are you?" Castle asked. He sounded tired but happy, and his voice helped to soothe her frayed nerves.

"I'm good."

"Yeah? Did you get your first assignment yet?"

"Actually, I got my first assignment today."

"Can you tell me anything?"

Technically, Kate wasn't supposed to say anything to anyone about her work, but she knew that she could trust Castle. Still, she didn't want him to know about this particular assignment. He would try and talk her into taking herself off the case, which she knew in her heart she should do. "There's really not much to tell yet," Kate lied, the deceit burning through her. After lying about the job interview, she had promised to be honest with Castle no matter the consequences. She had only made that promise a month ago, and here she was, breaking it already. It was best this way, though. If she was going to do this, the less Rick knew the better. "We don't even know if we're looking into a solid lead at this point. We received an anonymous tip today, and since I'm new, I guess they thought it would be a good training assignment."

"Oh, so no international espionage or alien abductions yet, huh?"

"Sadly, no," Kate said laughing.

"Are you enjoying it, though?"

"I'm still adjusting," she said quietly. "Besides Stack and my training partner, I don't know anyone. Once I get into the groove, I think things will be better."

Rick took a deep breath as he debated voicing his next thought. He didn't want Kate to think he was trying to strong-arm her or that he doubted her abilities, but she sounded truly unhappy. "You can always come home, you know."

"I know. Castle, things are good. I promise." Another lie. She wasn't good. She was one step away from falling back down the rabbit hole, and Castle knew her well enough to recognize the change in her voice. Still, if Castle had learned anything in the nearly six years since he had met Kate, it was that she often needed time and space. Pushing her would only make her angry. "Listen, Castle, I'm tired. I think I just need a good night's sleep. I'm going to take a bath and go to bed. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," Castle said, trying to mask his disappointment and concern. Something was very wrong, but he had no idea what. And since he was currently hundreds of miles away, he couldn't do anything about it. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Kate said quietly before quickly hanging up the phone. She felt incredibly guilty, and she knew that this decision had the potential to change everything. If she did this, there was a real possibility she wouldn't make it out alive, and if she did, she may never be safe again. But it was a risk she was willing to take. She didn't come all the way to Washington to let Bracken get away.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed and followed my first ****story. I hope you enjoy the next chapter. -A.**

The air was stuffy and humid as Kate surveyed her surroundings. The room was dark, and she was sitting in a straight-back chair. Her arms were tied behind her back, her legs tied to the legs of the chair, and a gag prevented her from making any cry for help. Trying to stay calm, she tested the ties but found there was no give at all. Whoever did this knew what he was doing.

Her head pounded as she tried to think back to the last thing she remembered. She had been in her apartment, just about to get into bed… A loud sound brought her out of her mental musings. The space was suddenly illuminated, and she realized she was in an abandoned warehouse similar to the warehouse Lockwood had taken Ryan and Esposito the night she arrested him. A large silver exam table sat in the corner, and a tray littered with various instruments she couldn't discern were located near the table. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was planned for her.

"Detective – excuse me, _Agent_ – Beckett, it's nice to see you again." Even though his face wasn't visible to her, she'd know that voice anywhere.

"I should've let you die," she hissed.

"Yeah, you probably should have," the Senator agreed. "I was going to leave you alone, you know. I was going to continue to honor our deal, but you just wouldn't stop. So blind you are in your pursuit of justice. I need the file."

"What file?"

"Are we really going to play that game?" the Senator asked, sounding exasperated. "_The file_. Where is it?"

"Why would I give it to you? You're going to kill me either way, right?"

"Yes, I am afraid the time for deals is over. It will be better for you, though, if you just give up the charade."

"What are you going to do? Torture me? I can tell you right now it's not going to work."

"I figured as much, which is why I brought some insurance. I think when you see what – no, rather who – I have with me you'll change your mind. Bring him in."

Kate's eyes filled with tears as she watched two of Bracken's hired hands escort Castle into the space. His head was down, footsteps heavy, as she realized whatever he had been drugged with still hadn't completely worn off.

"Don't you dare touch him," Kate seethed, the deadly serious tone of her voice enough to make Bracken take a step back even though she was constrained.

"Tell me where the file is, and I won't have to."

"I don't have it," Kate finally admitted. "I never did. I was bluffing." Bracken watched her for a second before he started laughing.

"You really expect me to believe that?"

"It's true."

"Oh, Kate, I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this the hard way. He's all yours, boys," Bracken said as he turned to leave. "Call me when she breaks."

"No," Kate yelled, as she struggled to free herself.

Kate woke with a start, completely disoriented. Sweat was pouring down her face, and she felt like she was going to be sick. She was sitting in her bed; the clock read 3:43 a.m. _A dream_, she thought to herself, _it was only a dream_. A few minutes passed while she tried to calm herself to no avail. Her thoughts centered solely on Castle. She had to make sure he was okay. Without a second thought, she grabbed her phone and dialed the familiar number. Rick answered on the third ring, sleep evident in his voice.

"Kate," he whispered thickly, "you okay?"

"Yeah," she said quietly, so relieved she was almost in tears. "I just wanted to hear your voice. I just…needed to check on you."

"Nightmare?" Castle guessed. Kate rarely experienced the nightmares anymore, but the dreams had been fairly frequent during the first few months of their relationship.

"Castle, I lied to you," she whispered, ignoring his question. "I'm so sorry. I didn't…I thought it would be safer if you didn't know."

"If I didn't know what? Kate, you're scaring me."

"It's Bracken. My new assignment is to investigate Senator Bracken." A tense silence filled the line, so Kate continued rambling as she tried to make him understand. She couldn't lose him over this. "I didn't ask for the assignment. One of the agents came to me this morning and said that someone called in an anonymous tip. We are investigating him for misappropriation…Castle, please say something."

"This is what you wanted, right?" Castle asked, his tone neutral. "Deep down, this is why you went to Washington, isn't it?"

"I…I guess I hoped that with the resources available I would eventually be able to nail him for something."

"Well, now, you have your chance."

"No, Castle. That's what I initially thought, too, but it's too dangerous. It's not just my life on the line anymore. If something happened to you…"

"I will be fine," Castle stated, effectively cutting her off. "This is your chance, Kate. Don't let this opportunity pass."

"Okay," she whispered quietly. "Are we okay?"

"I'm a little upset you lied to me, but at least this time you came to me before I figured it out on my own. It's a step. Kate?"

"Yeah?"

"Just promise me one thing. Promise me that when all of this is said and done you'll come home to me."

"Always."

"Good, you're here," Daniels said, approaching Beckett quickly as soon as she stepped off the elevator the next morning. "I was about to call you. I just got word from tech. We have a lead." Nodding dumbly, Beckett followed without a second thought. Despite not getting much sleep the night before, she felt her energy levels spike as adrenaline rushed through her veins. She was dying to know what they found. "Whatcha got?" Daniels asked as he and Beckett crowded around a computer. An IT guru, who Daniels introduced as the best in the business, was sitting behind two monitors both streaming audio feeds.

"The Senator made a phone call at 6:30 this morning from his personal line, which I tapped into last night. We traced the line to a Brent Hudson, who is one of Bracken's top donors. Bracken wanted him to pledge another $10,000 to his campaign, and when he balked, well, listen for yourself." Crowding in closer, Daniels and Beckett listened as the Senator threatened the donor, his threats extending beyond basic extortion.

"Brent, old buddy, you knew what you were getting yourself into when you came to me for help several years ago. I'd hate to have to get Melissa and the kids involved. Now, I need $10,000 by the end of the day. I trust that won't be a problem."

"No," the man mumbled, his anxiety palpable even through the phone line. "Of course not, Senator."

"Good," the weasel whispered, sounding triumphant, before the line went dead.

"There's our proof," Beckett whispered quietly. "Now what?"

"I'll take this to the Attorney General. To build an ironclad case, we will, of course, need more than this. But it's a good start."

"What about Brent Hudson?"

"Who?"

"The donor. Shouldn't we do something for him?"

"Not yet. It will be better for our case if the money actually changes hands. For now, we need to sit tight." Beckett nodded, none too pleased with 'sitting tight,' before heading back to her desk.

"How's the case going?" Stack asked when Beckett finally made her way to her desk.

"It's going well," Kate said, none too convincingly. Even though she was finally on the brink of winning a fight 15 years in the making, she wished more than anything that she was currently in New York trading barbs with Castle and the boys instead. Investigating Bracken without them just didn't feel right, even if she did have Castle's blessing.

Over the next few days, things continued in the same fashion. Beckett and Daniels continued to receive small breadcrumbs that each led them closer to their end goal of filing charges. It wasn't enough, though, and Kate was getting inpatient. Working homicide, she had become accustomed to moving quickly, knowing that the trail often grew cold after 48 hours. Here, it didn't seem like they were on any type of timeline. In fact, Stack had mentioned in passing that they sometimes monitored subjects for a year or more before making a move. Would she really be on this case for the next year? She didn't think she could stand it, but if it meant putting her mother's killer behind bars, even if for unrelated charges, she would wait.

Despite the stress of the week, Beckett finally made it to Friday, and she couldn't have been happier. Not only would she be able to curl up on the couch and watch trashy TV all weekend to take her mind off of things, but Castle was scheduled to arrive next week. She knew she was being selfish, but having him here made everything seem more manageable.

As she entered her apartment and threw her bag on the couch, she rummaged through the cupboards for a few minutes before deciding to take a bath, have some wine and call it an early night. Castle was attending a fundraiser for Black Pawn, so she knew she probably wouldn't talk to him. After a bath and two glasses of Merlot, Kate felt calmer and much more grounded. She queued up a movie On Demand and snuggled under a blanket, hoping the cheesy romantic comedy would provide an acceptable distraction.

Kate wasn't sure when she fell asleep, but the next thing she knew, light was streaming through the half-closed blinds on her living room window. Groggily, she sat up and reached for her cell phone; it was 7:14 a.m. Normally, she would have already been up and out for her morning run, but this morning, she felt sluggish. As she sat up and stretched her stiff muscles, she could have sworn she heard a noise outside of her door. Sitting stock still, not even breathing, Kate heard the noise again followed by a muffled curse. She jumped up and ran into her bedroom to retrieve the gun from the lock box she kept near her bed. Hiding the gun by her side, she carefully and cautiously opened the front door. There was no one there.

Peering around the door frame, Kate saw a male figure disappear down the hallway, the hood on his jacket flapping as he turned and ran down the steps leading to Kate's floor. She took after him, yelling for him to freeze, but it was moot. As she rounded the corner to follow him, an older woman stepped out of her apartment with a small dog on a leash. She nearly knocked the woman down and was forced to pause for a moment to apologize. By the time she got downstairs, the man was gone, nothing more than a ghost in a sea of cars and early-morning risers.

In a black town car now two blocks away, Michaels cursed himself for being so careless. When Beckett was alone, she always left the apartment between 6:45 and 7 on Saturday mornings to get in a run before going about her day. Bracken had asked him last night to place a wireless surveillance device in her apartment, which would allow them to monitor her phone calls and online activities. Not wanting to wait until Monday morning, he figured he'd have the perfect window while she was out for her jog. Instead, he almost blew the entire mission. His boss wouldn't be happy.

As Kate headed back to her apartment, she bolt-locked the door and leaned back against it while she tried to steady her breathing. She didn't know what the hell she had stumbled into, but she suddenly had the feeling she was in way over her head.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I loved the positive feedback I received on the last chapter. Thanks again to everyone who's reading! - A.**

Previously:

_As Kate headed back to her apartment, she bolt-locked the door and leaned back against it while she tried to steady her breathing. She didn't know what the hell she had stumbled into, but she suddenly had the feeling she was in way over her head._

Kate didn't know how much time had passed since she returned to her apartment. She was still standing against the door when her phone started ringing. With shaking hands, she set her gun down on the coffeetable and answered.

"Beckett, we've gotten another lead on the Bracken case," Stack's voice sounded over the line. "Can you come in this morning?"

"Yeah, I'll be there in 30."

Hanging up the phone, Kate moved to her bedroom and quickly dressed. Across town, Michaels's cell phone vibrated in his lap signaling an incoming text message: **It's handled. You have one hour. **

When Kate entered the tech floor 30 minutes later, she looked for Agent Daniels. Stack wasn't even on the Bracken case, so it was strange that he called her. It was even stranger that he was the only person there. "You said you had something for me to see?" Kate asked uncertainly.

"In retrospect, it probably wasn't big enough news for you to make a trip," Stack said sheepishly. "Tech hacked into the Senator's bank records last night and made printouts. All of the donor money he requested last week has changed hands. Here's the donation from Brent Hudson," Stack said, highlighting dollar amounts for Kate's reference. "We also have audio from a private meeting the Senator held last night with his campaign staff. His analysts are projecting that he's going to need to spend at least $500,000 in this first leg of the Presidential race, so we're expecting a lot more action within the coming days."

"Is that all?" Kate asked suspiciously. The more time she spent with Stack the less she trusted him. Why was he suddenly up to speed on the case? And how did he know about Brent Hudson? He hadn't listened to the call.

"For now. Daniels got a break in another case he's been working on. He'll be out of town until Monday, so he briefed me last night before he left."

"Do you need me to stay?"

"No. I didn't mean to interrupt your morning if you had plans. I just know you're eager to solve your first case. We also try to keep phone communication to a minimum since phone lines are not always secure. I'll call you if anything else arises. At the rate we're going, we should be ready to get a search warrant for a raid of his campaign quarters by midweek at the latest."

"Great," Kate said, finally feeling like they were getting somewhere. "Thanks for your help."

Everett Michaels was in the final stage of installation when he heard a key in the lock. Beckett had only been gone for 30 minutes. There was no way she would be back already. Grabbing the microchip, he ran to the walk-in pantry located in Kate's kitchen, just adjacent to the living room, and closed the door. He held his breath and quietly listened as heavy footsteps sounded from the entryway.

"Kate?" he heard a man's voice call.

Of course, she'd have unexpected company this weekend. She was more work than his pay was worth. After this, he was going to need a raise.

"Kate?" he heard the man call again as the footsteps came closer. After a pause, the footsteps faded away again, and Michaels guessed Kate's visitor had headed back towards her bedroom. "Where are you?" Michaels heard through the wall as Kate's visitor made a phone call. "I'm in Washington. Really. I wanted to surprise you. I didn't realize you'd have to work this morning. Do you want to meet for breakfast? Yeah, I can meet you there. Just a minute…let me write down the directions. Okay, I will see you soon."

_Thank God,_ Michaels thought. He waited a few more minutes until he heard the front door close and the lock click back into place. With a deep breath, he quickly finished the installation and left Kate's apartment through the back window near the fire escape, grateful for the second time today that he hadn't been caught.

"I can't believe you're here," Kate exclaimed, nearly knocking Castle down as she threw her arms around him in an uncharacteristic show of public affection when he arrived at a café near Pennsylvania Avenue 20 minutes later.

"I'm going to surprise you more often if this is the greeting I get," Rick laughed as he kissed the top of her head.

"What about the press tour?"

"I pulled some strings. I still have the signing on Tuesday, but I'm yours for the whole weekend," he said with a crooked smile. Kate smiled back at him, but there was a tension in her eyes that he couldn't quite place. "Should we order?" Castle asked uncertainly a few minutes later when Kate still hadn't let go. She hadn't clung this tightly since their first night together.

"Yes, let's," Kate said with an embarrassed smile as she finally let him go. Ten minutes later, the pair was seated at a corner table with coffees and pastries. They were both quiet, but the silence wasn't tense at all. They were simply enjoying breakfast together.

"Did you guys catch a lead?" Rick asked finally breaking the spell.

"I guess, if you could really call it that," Kate said, still uncertain about her morning meeting with Stack. "It was strange; my training partner is out of town this weekend, so Stack is filling in. He asked me to come in this morning, but all he had to show me were a few bank records that basically confirmed what we already knew. I'm just so used to the way we operated in New York, you know? This office is so different."

"Maybe they're just being more thorough since it's your first case."

"Maybe." The pair lapsed back into silence, and after finishing breakfast, took a walk down Pennsylvania Avenue to take in the sights. "Someone tried to break into my apartment this morning," Kate finally blurted awkwardly.

"What?" Castle asked, pulling her to a stop.

"I fell asleep on my couch last night, and when I woke up, someone was trying to get in my front door. I tried to confront him, but by the time I grabbed my gun, he was already retreating down the hallway. I chased him, but he got away."

"Did you call the police?"

"No."

"Kate, you should've called the police."

"I am the police," Kate said quietly. "Anyway, it's just had me kind of shaken up."

"Do you think he knows?"

"No, I don't think so," Kate responded, already on the same page as Castle.

"Why else would someone try to break into your apartment?"

"I don't know, Rick, but please don't let this ruin the weekend. If you don't feel safe at my place, we can get a hotel room."

Castle watched her closely before acquiescing. "Fine, but if they come for us in the middle of the night, you better protect me," he said jokingly. "Too soon?" he asked when he saw Kate's face.

"Maybe a little too soon," she said, nodding her head. "What do you want to do today?"

"I have a few ideas," Castle said suggestively. "But if we tried any of them out here, I think we'd be arrested for public indecency." Kate shook her head at him as she linked their fingers and began pulling him in the direction of her apartment.

Several hours later, Kate and Rick were lying in Kate's bed. He was close to sleep – after the party, he had only been able to snag a catnap before he needed to be at the airport – while Kate was wide awake, lost in thought, as she absentmindedly ran her fingers through Castle's silky locks. Rick's eyes were closed, mouth slack, as she watched him. In moments like these, the feelings she had for him crashed over her like a wave threatening to pull her under. It was scary, but it was also exciting and wonderful. And Bracken had the ability to take it all away from her.

"What are thinking about?" Castle asked groggily, as Kate's light, affectionate touches became more forceful. She looked at him, torn, but didn't speak. "You know what this party needs? Wine," Rick added, wanting to give Kate a minute to order her thoughts. "I'll be right back."

When Rick returned a few minutes later, Kate was propped against the headboard, waiting. "You must be planning on some serious pillow talk if you thought we needed wine," Kate teased, trying to keep the atmosphere as light as possible.

"I want to know what's on your mind."

"It's just this case," she whispered.

"What about it?" Castle prodded. He wasn't going to let her off the hook this time. It was high time Kate finally opened up to him.

"It's just brought back some unpleasant thoughts and anxieties."

"Like?"

"Castle…"

"What? I want to know."

"I'm scared," she whispered so quietly Castle barely caught her words. "Terrified. And I shouldn't be. I'm not a lone ranger anymore. I have the full support of the FBI behind me, but I guess I just don't trust my new colleagues yet. It's not like working with you, Ryan and Esposito. I don't know that they'll have my back when it counts. I have to trust them, and it's not easy. Let's talk about something else, okay?"

"Okay," Castle said quietly, willing to drop the subject now as a small reward for Beckett's honesty. "What do you want to talk about?"

"The wedding," she said with a small smile.

"You want to talk about our wedding?" Castle asked incredulously.

"Why is that surprising?" Rick's reaction felt like a punch in the gut, not because he was reluctant to discuss the big step, but because he looked so happy, so hopeful and so surprised. Had she really done this to him? Had she really made him start doubting everything again?

"I just didn't realize you were so excited about becoming Mrs. Castle," Rick teased with a small smile.

"I am, Castle. I'm so excited. I know I've made a mess of things. I know I've made you doubt…"

"We, Kate. We made a mess of things. Both of us. It wasn't just you."

"I want to live a long happy life with you, Castle. I don't want to constantly worry about a deal I made for my life when I was 32 years old. That's one of the many reasons I feel like I have to do this."

"I understand."

"So," Kate started after another brief silence. "Do you want a big or small wedding?

"Small."

"Good, I wanted small, too," Kate laughed. "I thought it would be nice just to have our families, close friends, and of course, our Twelfth family."

"Of course," Castle said, grinning at her enthusiasm. Kate launched into her version of a small dream wedding, and Castle felt the knot in his chest lessen a bit. If their conversation had proved anything, it was that Kate really, truly did want to get married as much as he did. And that was enough to temporarily banish any dark thoughts.

"Stack," Agent Stack barked into the phone.

"It's Michaels. Thank you for covering for me today. The Senator wants an update. Do you have enough evidence?"

"We should have enough to get a warrant. I'm guessing we'll be ready for the raid by midweek, sooner if we're lucky. After the raid, I'll delete all of the audio files."

"That sounds fine. I'll touch base early next week." After completing his call with Stack, Michaels dialed Bracken on his secure line, a line the Feds and their techies had yet to tap.

"Well? Is everything going to plan?"

"My contact says we should be ready for the raid of your campaign quarters by midweek."

"Perfect. And the file?"

"I installed the surveillance chip, but I wasn't able to look for the file. Her partner arrived unexpectedly."

"You've been searching for weeks. She's too smart to leave the file in her apartment. We may have to alter the plan. If we can't find the file, she can't be killed in the raid. We'll need her alive."

"Yes, Sir."

"Have your contact work out a different arrangement. Find a secluded space, have him bring Beckett to you, and keep her alive until I have the file in my possession, understood?"

"Yes, Senator."

"Good. Don't screw this up, Michaels, or I'll be forced to deal with you, too."

**A/N: I thought we needed a little Beckett/Castle in this chapter. Things are really going to start picking up next time.**


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the weekend passed without incidence and all too soon for both Castle and Beckett's liking. As Monday morning dawned, the bubble they had wrapped themselves in popped, leaving them both feeling a little down.

"I'll be back Thursday," Castle said, as he held Kate.

"I don't think I can wait that long," she said, turning her head to capture his lips.

"Come home with me."

"I wish I could."

"I know. Just remember your promise," Castle said, his eyes darkening as he thought about Kate's current predicament. "Be careful. Come home to me."

"I will," she said quietly. "So, Thursday?"

"Thursday."

When Beckett arrived at work a half hour later, Daniels was already camped out at his desk, coffee in hand, while he looked through the Senator's bank records. "We've got something here," he said, holding up the papers.

"I know," Kate said, moving to stand next to him. "Stack showed me Saturday when he called me in."

"Stack called you this weekend?" Daniels asked, confusion and a hint of anger in his tone.

"Yeah," Kate said, not quite sure what the big deal was. "He called me since you were out of town working another case."

"I was in D.C. all weekend."

A cold chill moved through Kate's spine. Her body was suddenly telling her to flee, while her mind tried to work out the possible implications of this revelation. "So, you didn't brief him on Friday?"

"No, I did. He wanted an update on the case. He's kind of second in command around here. I mean, we answer to the Attorney General, but Stack's been on the team the longest. It must have been a misunderstanding. Anyway, I'm going to get started on the warrant request…"

"It's already done," Stack said, as he approached the pair and interrupted their conversation. "I filled the paperwork out last night."

"Oh," Daniels said, obviously flustered. "Thank you."

"I'm going to get a coffee," Kate said, trying to get away from Stack as quickly as possible. "Need a refill?"

"Yeah, thanks." Daniels was still regarding Stack confusedly, as she retreated. Once the breakroom door closed behind her, she leaned against the counter and took a breath. She needed to get out of there as soon as possible without tipping Stack off to the fact that she was on to him. With shaking hands, she began to pour two cups of coffee.

"How was your weekend?" Stack's voice behind her startled her so badly she spilled coffee all over the counter. "Do I make you nervous, Agent Beckett?" he asked with a smile on his face.

"Of course not," Kate said, hoping her voice sounded stronger than she felt. "If you'll excuse me, I have work to do." She grabbed the mugs and headed back to Daniels's desk. Her team member was sitting where she had left him staring aimlessly into space since his case and assignments had basically just been hijacked. To his credit, he looked just as perplexed as Kate felt.

**She acts tough, but she scares easy,** Stack typed out as he sent a quick text message to Michaels. **She won't be terribly difficult to break. Although, I do think she's getting suspicious. It's good that we moved up the timeline to tonight.**

The rest of the day passed tortuously slow for Kate, who felt her anxiety rising with each passing second. Was she overreacting? Something was definitely off about Stack, but that didn't mean he was actually working for or with Bracken. Maybe he was just a jerk who liked to intimidate. Her mind was in overdrive, and she could feel the familiar tendrils of PTSD lurking, waiting for an opportunity to take over. As she had after her shooting, Kate almost felt like she was going crazy. The lights were too bright and the voices around her too loud. "I'm going to head out a few minutes early," she told Daniels when she just couldn't take it anymore. It was already 5:30, so she didn't think she'd be missed much during her 30-minute absence.

"Sounds good," Daniels said. "There's obviously not much to do now but wait."

"Great. Call me with news."

"You got it." Grabbing her bag, Kate made a hasty retreat towards the door.

"Heading out Beckett?" Stack's voice sounded behind her once again, and she wanted to burst into tears. She had almost made it. Almost.

"Actually, yes," she said with a professional smile as she turned to face him. "I didn't think anyone would mind."

"There's been a small development."

"Oh?"

"We have reason to believe that Bracken is on to us. The raid needs to happen tonight before he has a chance to destroy any evidence. A team is being assembled now."

Heading back into the space, Kate felt like she was being herded. "You ready for this?" Daniels asked cheerily. "Nothing like a change of plans to mix things up."

She smiled but didn't respond, afraid if she did they would all notice how terrified she sounded. More than anything, she wanted to call Castle, but she knew he'd be on a plane. If she left a message right now, she'd just scare him. _It will be over tonight,_ she told herself. _After this, I can go back to New York. I just need to make it through the next few hours. _If only Kate realized how difficult surviving the next few hours would be.

* * *

Castle's plane was supposed to depart from Dulles International Airport at 12:30, but he didn't make it. While Kate was trying to think through her current predicament, he was waiting on a call back from Esposito. Sitting on her bed, wringing his hands, he couldn't believe either of them had been so stupid. He wanted to call her, but he knew she'd be home soon. If he relayed the information he had discovered over the phone, she might startle, which would tip off whoever in the Attorney General's office was working for Bracken. As soon as she got home, they were getting on the first plane to New York. He wasn't taking no for an answer.

After Kate left, Castle finished packing and moved into the kitchen to fix himself some coffee. He had quite a bit of time left before he needed to be at the airport, so he was planning on using Kate's laptop to do some writing. As he waited for the coffee to brew, he leaned back against the counter and looked up towards the ceiling to stretch the tense muscles in his neck. In the very corner of the ceiling, where the kitchen and living room walls met, he noticed a glint of silver. His curiosity had gotten the better of him, so he reached for the object. He almost had a heart attack when he realized it was some sort a microscopic video camera. Before he could do anything else to jeopardize himself, he gingerly laid it on the counter and discretely took a photo, which he immediately sent to Esposito.

"Castle," he answered, when he saw the Twelfth Precinct's phone number flashed on his caller ID screen.

"It's definitely some sort of surveillance device," Esposito whispered. "You need to get out of there, bro. What the hell has Beckett gotten herself into now?"

He hadn't mentioned Bracken or the case, and now that he knew her apartment was bugged he definitely wasn't going to bring it up. "Once Kate gets home, we will…go to dinner," he added uncertainly, not quite sure if there were any devices in her bedroom able to transmit sound. "Thanks for your help with getting those reservations."

"You got it," Esposito said. "Seriously, though. Don't do anything stupid. We'll figure this out when you guys get back to New York."

An hour later, Castle's trepidation had given way to sheer panic when Kate still hadn't made it home. The fact that she was late wasn't really cause for concern itself. After all, she thought he was back in New York, so she could have gone for a run or stopped for dinner. But her phone was off. Every time he called, it went straight to voicemail, and it wasn't like he could call her office. The number for the Attorney General's secret investigation team wasn't exactly listed in the phone book.

"She's still not home," he blurted into the phone twenty minutes later when sitting and waiting was no longer an option. "I tried her phone, but it's going to voicemail."

"Are you still in the apartment?" Esposito asked.

"Yes."

"Okay, stay put. I have an old military contact in the FBI who owes me a favor. He might be able to help."

Five minutes later, Esposito returned Castle's call. "Bro, we've got a problem," he stated grimly.

* * *

Kate was feeling quite disoriented as she tried to make out her surroundings. Her head ached terribly, and she couldn't see well out of her right eye. She was in the backseat of a car, that much she knew. She just wasn't sure where they were going.

As the team was getting ready to execute the search warrant, Stack announced that Daniels would lead the caravan and ride with two other team members while he and Beckett followed. Kate didn't balk or act uncomfortable. Instead, she got into the car with a smile, waiting for anything unusual to occur before she made her move. She got the signal she was waiting for when Stack slowed unnecessarily for a yellow light, losing the trail on Daniels's vehicle. He was in the right-hand lane, just adjacent to a sidewalk, which helped her odds tremendously. The only problem was that it was a fairly secluded street and nearly dark. There weren't any cars at the intersection around Stack, and no businesses to run to for help. Still, it was now or never. She undid her seat belt and began fumbling with her holster so Stack wouldn't grow suspicious as he approached the intersection. As soon as the car stopped, she threw open her door and made a run for it.

"Son of a bitch," she heard Stack yell as he put the car in park and took off after her. She had the lead, but Stack had a taser, which he used without preamble. As soon as the first shock hit her back, she fell to her knees, unable to run any further. That was the last thing she remembered; although, with the swelling in her eye and pounding in her head, she knew he must have knocked her unconscious.

Slowly and with great effort, she sat up. Looking out the window offered no clues. She had no idea where they were or how long they had been driving. It was still dusk, though, so she didn't think too much time could have passed. "How long have you been working for the Senator?" she asked, causing Stack to jump. He didn't realize she was awake, not that it really mattered. He had tied her hands and feet together and laid her down in the backseat to prevent another escape attempt.

"I don't work for the Senator. I am an independent contractor. Working in the Attorney General's office, I have forged quite a few important relationships with contacts who will pay dearly to have their…problems… sorted. Dealing with their issues often involves partnering with like-minded individuals who specialize in other areas. One such contractor was hired by Senator Bracken to take care of you, so I, of course, offered my assistance."

"Of course," Kate responded dryly. "Is that where we're going now? To see the Senator?"

"No, we're going to see my partner. He has a few questions for you. Oh, great, here's our first stop." Stack pulled into a deserted parking lot in front of a dilapidated building that looked like it hadn't been habituated for decades. There was only one other car in the parking lot, a black sedan with tinted windows and a temporary license plate. Stack got out of the car and threw Beckett's cell phone on the ground before stomping on it. He left her gun and badge in the front seat. Opening the back door, he grabbed the tie around Beckett's wrist and pulled, none too gently, until she was out of the car and lying on the ground. Her pant leg had come up and her shin had scraped across some sharp rocks during her dissent. She could feel the blood running down her leg, but she didn't so much as whimper. She'd never give Stack that kind of satisfaction. Using the ties, he picked her up and carried her to the sedan. Instead of opening the door to the backseat, however, he opened the trunk and placed her inside before shutting the lid. Straining her ears, Beckett heard nothing until the car started, the gentle, steady vibrations alerting her to the fact that they were on the move once again.

* * *

"What do you mean she never made it to the site?" Castle roared into the phone, all semblance of calm lost as soon as he heard Esposito's words.

"They're tracking the car now. I should be receiving regular updates." Castle's chest was tight, as he punched the wall, which would leave a mark both on his fist and in the paint. Beckett's rental deposit was the last thing on his mind, however, at this point. "In the meantime, you need to get out of that apartment and go somewhere safe. They're probably coming for you, too."

Not at all concerned with his own safety, Castle shrugged Espo's suggestion off as he severed the connection. It would be prudent to have Kate's backup piece on him just in case, though. He quickly located the key to the lock box and grabbed the spare Sig Sauer. It was fully loaded and ready to go. As he debated his next move, he heard the sound of broken glass explode through the living room. Gun raised and ready to fire, he made his way quietly out of the bedroom and down the hall. "Stop right there," he yelled menacingly as his finger tensed on the trigger.

"Woah, don't shoot," a familiar voice yelled, as the man in front of him raised his hands in the air. "It's just me. Put the gun down."

"Dad?" Castle questioned dumbly.


	6. Chapter 6

Previously:

_"Woah, don't shoot," a familiar voice yelled as the man in front of him raised his hands in the air. "It's just me. Put the gun down."_

_ "Dad?" Castle questioned dumbly._

"Boy, did I get here just in time," Jackson Hunt remarked as he watched his son slowly lower the gun. "If I had only been a few minutes later, you would have already been running around Washington, armed and one step away from getting yourself killed."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Castle said, his tone betraying both a hint of anger and relief. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving you and your girl, of course," Hunt shrugged like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Who's been watching us?"

"You really don't know?" Hunt asked, eyebrow raised.

"How do you know about Bracken?"

"He's been on my radar since Beckett was shot at the police captain's funeral. It was a high-profile case, and when I saw you were involved, I wanted to make sure you and the family were safe. Are we really going to stand around here and play 20 questions? Beckett doesn't have much time."

"Where is she?"

"Last I saw, she was being placed in the trunk of an unregistered vehicle by an FBI agent. She was a little banged up but otherwise fine. I placed a GPS chip inside the car before the agent got there. It's still in transit. Now, where's her copy of the file? That's what they want."

"She doesn't have one."

"I suspected as much. That was a good bluff, but it's going to make her life hell for the next few hours."

"When we rescue her, we have to find a way to link Bracken to her kidnapping and to the murders. If we don't, she'll never be safe again."

"I've already taken care of Bracken, but you should know that this doesn't end with him. Oh," Hunt said, glancing down at a device clipped to his pants pocket. "The car just stopped. They're at an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city. Let's go."

"Wait," Rick said, pocketing the weapon as he trailed after his father. "What do you mean this doesn't end with Bracken? And how did you take care of him?"

"We'll talk on the way," Hunt said, flying down the fire escape with Castle hot on his heels.

* * *

Kate felt her heart rate kick up a notch when the vibrations stopped, signaling the end of their drive. Throughout the entire ride, she had tried to work on the knots around her wrist, but it was no use. There were no tools in the trunk that she could use, and there was absolutely no slack in the ties. Stack knew what he was doing.

"Here we are," Stack announced cheerfully as he opened the lid to the trunk. "Now, I'm going to undo the ties around your ankles so you can walk," he explained. "If you think about doing something stupid, you'll get a bullet in the head, got it?" Instead of responding, Kate looked around Stack to another, larger man who was flanking him, gun raised. "Got it?" Stack asked more forcefully, shaking her like a ragdoll.

"Yes," she said through gritted teeth. "Loud and clear."

"Good. Wait," he said, as Beckett attempted sit up. "We don't want to take any chances." Stack held up a black bandana and used it as a blindfold, tying a secure knot around the back of her head. As soon as the blindfold was in place, she felt the ties on her legs release, and she experimentally rolled each ankle to make sure she could walk. "Come on," he said, pulling her to her feet and steadying her. "This way." He pulled her to the right, and they began walking. Although she couldn't see where they were headed, she could feel the pavement give way to grass under her feet before she was instructed to step up over a curb. On the pavement once again, they walked quickly before stepping over another curb, which made Beckett think they had crossed the street. The change in acoustics a few minutes later alerted her to the fact that they were now indoors, and the sound of a door slamming behind them confirmed her thought. She walked until she reached a wall and was forced into a sitting position. It wasn't until she was sitting with her ankles retied that Stack removed the blindfold. There wasn't much light in the room, so she could hardly make out her surroundings. As she glanced around, she realized Stack was undoing the ties at her wrists. He brought her arms in front of her and then cuffed her arms around a steel pipe on the wall that was running parallel to the floor.

"She's all yours," Stack said triumphantly. "When can I expect my cut?"

"About that..." Everett Michaels started, looking apologetic, "the Senator isn't paying me enough to share."

"We had a deal, Michaels."

"Well, deals have a way of breaking, don't they? It was nice working with you, Agent Stack." Before Kate could even blink, Michaels raised his gun and shot three bullets into Stack's chest. The agent fell backwards onto the floor next to her. "Looks like it's just us now," Michaels said with a lurid smile as he pulled a suitcase over and began emptying the contents.

* * *

"What did you do to Bracken?" Castle questioned as he and Hunt flew down the highway in a black SUV.

"I broke into the hired hand's apartment earlier this afternoon while he was out preparing for his evening with Beckett," Hunt said with a smile. "He had all of the evidence we needed stored in a safe in his apartment. The combination was sinfully easy to decipher. The contents of the safe are in an envelope headed to the U.S. Justice Department to the attention of Agent Jacob Daniels as we speak."

"How do you know he can be trusted?"

"The only dirty agent in the Attorney General's office is Stack," Hunt replied. "He kidnapped Beckett." Castle felt sick as he considered his father's words. If the job offer was truly nothing more than a ruse, Beckett must feel horrible right now. Of course, that was probably the last thing on her mind.

* * *

"You do realize you just killed a federal agent in cold blood, right?" Kate said, her heart beating so fast she wasn't sure what would kill her first – Michaels's gun or a heart attack. "I can tell that wasn't part of the plan. Bracken won't be happy. Who's going to destroy the evidence the Feds have against him now?"

"That's not my concern."

"And what is your concern?"

"You ask too many questions."

"Isn't it your job to take orders from the Senator?"

"I take orders from no one," Michaels said fiercely. "Now, where's the file?"

"If you're not working for Bracken, then who are you working for?"

"Where's the file?" he asked again, his patience waning.

"It's only polite to answer a lady first," Beckett sassed, her eyes blazing. Sensing she needed a little encouragement, Michaels grabbed his gun and backhanded her with the butt of his pistol. The movement sent her head flying backward into the wall, and her vision blurred as she tried to regain focus on the man in front of her. Blood from her nose, which she thought was likely broken, was pouring down her face. "I don't know what you're talking about," she spat.

"Listen, lady," Michaels said. "I've got all night and a whole bag of goodies here. Trust me. You don't want to play this game. Now, I will give you one more chance. Where is the file?" Kate tried to think of a witty response, but her head hurt too much. Instead, she closed her eyes and leaned back against the pipe. By now, Castle would be in New York, which was good. He would be safe there. Ryan and Esposito would make sure of it.

* * *

"What did you mean in the apartment? When you said this doesn't end with Bracken?"

"Bracken is the enforcer. As second in command, he was tasked with keeping secrets secret, which explains the reason for the bloodshed. He craves the power he was granted, which is why anyone who gets too close is silenced. He was never, however, the brains of the operation. This is our exit."

"Who's in charge?"

"Sit back," Hunt instructed, killing the lights on his SUV as he slowly approached an intersection. "We're going to park here for a moment until we know exactly what we're dealing with." They had arrived at a former industrial area that obviously had closed down quite some time ago. Pulling out his phone, Hunt did a quick search of the address. "The building we're looking for is just up the street and to the right," he said, showing his son the map. "It looks like it used to house an old carpet factory, but the company went out of business eight years ago. The building has been vacant since." Hunt turned down the street and drove past the warehouse at a normal speed so as not to arouse suspicion. Trying to remain discrete, Castle cautioned a glance in the building's direction. In the parking lot was the sedan Hunt had referenced, but there were no other cars in the lot and no one was guarding the front entrance, which seemed suspicious. The older man drove almost an entire block before killing the engine. "You've got Beckett's gun?"

"Right here," Castle said, motioning to the spare piece.

Hunt nodded before unbuckling his seat belt and drawing his own weapon. "Follow my lead."

The night air was warm and stagnant, and as Castle and Hunt made their way down the street, taking care to avoid streetlights, Castle's thoughts were whirring. He had no idea what shape Beckett would be in when they found her, and he had no idea what his father meant when he said that the conspiracy didn't end with Bracken. The Senator was so composed, so in charge, but they didn't have the entire file at their disposal. It had been sheer luck that they pulled his bank account information from the shredded pieces of paper. If he had a partner, if he was working for someone else... Castle was so lost in his own thoughts he walked right into the back of his father, who had paused to survey the area now that they were getting closer.

"Pay attention," Hunt barked quietly. "Stay in the moment. The second you get distracted is the second your enemy gets the drop on you." Shaking his head in disbelief at his son's distractedness, Hunt pulled a small pair of night vision goggles out of his jacket pocket. "The car is empty," he said quietly. "We can cross now, but stay behind that tree." As they moved across the street, Castle couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. This was too easy. "We'll move on three," Hunt directed. "One, two, three…"

Following Hunt's lead, Castle quietly ducked out of safety and crossed to the entrance of the warehouse. With Hunt on one side and Castle on the other, Hunt reached over and opened the door before the men peered into the space. Working in tandem, they moved quickly and quietly, clearing the first and second floors with ease. "She's not here," Castle said as he felt his panic rising. "She's not here."

"Come on, we still have one more floor to check," Hunt said, although he was starting to agree with his son. Cautiously, they climbed the stairs to the third floor, which only housed one office. Kicking down the door with his gun raised, Hunt peered into the space. With a defeated sigh, he moved out of the way for his son to have a look. The room was empty.

**A/N: Happy Friday, everyone! I will post the next chapter before the weekend is over. Thanks for reading. -A.**


	7. Chapter 7

"Now what?" Castle asked, forcing back the panic and dark thoughts that were trying to crowd in. He needed to keep his thoughts as clear as possible. Beckett's life depended on it.

"To my knowledge, Bracken's hired hand did not have another vehicle at his disposal. I am sure she must be in one of these nearby buildings."

Looking up and down the street, Castle noticed that there were at least five different vacant buildings on each side of the street. It would take all night to search them all, and whoever had Beckett was being quiet. There were no lights, guards or noise to give them any clues as to where she may be. "How do we know which one?"

Motioning for Rick to stay back, Hunt approached the vehicle. He looked for footprints or any other indicators, but he found none. It was too dark, and he was afraid pulling out his cell phone to illuminate the sidewalk would draw unwelcome attention. "Everyone's first instinct will be the same as ours was. They will look in the buildings closest to the vehicle. Let's move directly across the street. If they moved her, they wouldn't have walked far because they wouldn't want to risk anyone seeing."

* * *

Across the city, the U.S. Justice Department had dissolved into total chaos. The Attorney General was on the tech floor with the rest of his team looking over surveillance videos for any kind of clue as to where Beckett and Stack may have gone. Even though executing the search warrant had been the evening's objective, the mission had been temporarily abandoned when Stack failed to make it to the campaign headquarters. They had found Stack's abandoned vehicle an hour ago and noticed that Beckett's weapon and badge were in the front seat. They weren't sure what that meant, though. Their first thoughts were that both agents had been taken, but that theory was becoming less and less plausible since Stack's weapons were missing from the vehicle.

"Agent Daniels, a package just arrived for you," Colleen, the Attorney General's personal assistant, said as she approached his desk. Perplexed, Daniels accepted the unmarked package. He hadn't been expecting anything and almost tossed it on his desk to deal with later. Something stopped him, however.

"Thanks, Colleen," he said with a quick nod as he ripped into the envelope. Pouring the contents onto his desk, his confusion and trepidation mounted as he flipped through the contents. There was a burner cell phone and myriad papers. As he began to scan the documents, he suddenly realized that the agents' disappearance and the Bracken investigation went much deeper than anyone realized. "Hey, everyone," he yelled, trying to get the attention of his co-workers, "I've got something."

* * *

Beckett had been through more in her 34 years than most women endure in a lifetime. Still, nothing could have prepared her for the horror of her current predicament. If anything, the situation rekindled the fire that had been dwindling since her mother's murder had been solved. While putting killers away had never lost its importance, her drive had, admittedly, lessened. She now felt a renewed since of purpose. Many of the victims she had fought for over the years had endured similar situations during their last hours. She would fight for them and for Castle, whose face she saw every time she closed her eyes. They were just getting started. She wasn't going to let Bracken destroy everything before it even had a chance to truly begin.

"Where is the file?"

"Who are you working for?" Always the same question, always the same answer. Part of her wondered if she was some kind of masochist for prolonging this, but she had a feeling that Michaels knew more than he was letting on. Every single finger on her right hand, as well as her right wrist, was broken, and Michaels had no problem moving on to her left hand. He seemed intent on keeping his promise of working all night if he had to, and even though Kate hadn't gotten a good glimpse of the "toys" at his disposal, she knew that it was only going to get worse.

"Where is the file?"

"I don't have it," Kate said, meeting her captor's eyes for the first time. She knew he wouldn't believe her, knew that it wouldn't end the torment, but she was hoping that it might buy her some time or sympathy. And it was the truth after all.

"Oh, good," Michaels said sarcastically, "I was starting to worry that your little blow to the head had left you incapable of saying anything other than 'Who are you working for?' Unfortunately, that little ploy isn't going to work."

"If I had the file, don't you think you would have found it by now?" For the first time, she saw a flicker of doubt in Michaels's eyes as he considered her words.

"If you don't have the file," Michaels started, willing to play along for the first time tonight, "how did you find out about Bracken?" This was a question Beckett wasn't prepared to answer, and her thoughts were sluggish from the effects of her head injuries, making coming up with a quick lie difficult. If she told the truth, she'd show her entire hand, and Michaels would have no reason to keep her alive. "That's what I thought," Michaels said, taking her silence as confirmation that she had been lying. "Quit playing games."

As Hunt and Castle stalked around the perimeter of the building across the street, they came across a cracked window. Hunt instructed Castle to stay down while he peered through the space. As he searched for any sign of life, he heard the unmistakable sound of a woman screaming. It was faint, but it was definitely there. "She's in there," Castle yelled, springing to his feet. "She's in there, and she's hurt. They're hurting her. We've got to get in there."

"Calm down, son," Hunt instructed. "If we charge in there unprepared, we're not doing Kate any favors." Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Castle nodded. They moved around the perimeter of the building until they were at the front entrance. "I want you to stay here until I know how many men we're dealing with." As quietly as possible, the older man began to work on the latch of the door. The old steel scraped across the floor, however, as he tried to open the door, making an awful, loud noise. With wide eyes, Castle met his father's grim expression. Their cover had just been blown.

"Make another sound, and I will shoot," Michaels seethed, his gun pressed against Kate's temple. He was crouched on the floor near his victim, ready to pounce. The concrete floor carried sound, so he knew that he'd hear someone approaching if they were coming towards the room. When he heard nothing, he started to relax. Still, he figured he better check to make sure they didn't have company. "I would tell you to stay put, but I don't think that will be a problem," he said with an evil smirk before leaving Kate cuffed to the pipe. Adding to the list of broken extremities was her left foot, which Michaels had smashed in after their last exchange of words. She had been too blinded by pain to hear the noise caused by the door, so she figured it was simply a fabrication of Michaels's imagination. She wouldn't let herself believe that someone had finally found her.

Michaels's footsteps could be heard on the other side of the door as he approached the front entrance. Castle was on the left side of the door and Hunt was on the right. As soon as the man opened the door, they would pounce, guns raised. As the latch on the door sounded, Castle looked to his father for instruction. The man gave a single hand signal to his son before Castle rounded the door frame. The plan was going to be for Castle to approach from the left. When Michaels turned his attention to Rick, he would be left open to an attack from Hunt.

The next few minutes were the most terrifying minutes of Castle's life. After hearing radio silence, Michaels was fairly convinced that he had heard nothing more than some kids looking for a good time and an empty space in which to have it. He had let his guard down for a few precious seconds, which allowed Castle to knock him backward. But he recovered quickly, and began firing gunshots blindly into the air, a few of which missed Castle by only a scant few inches. It was futile, though. Michaels was completely unprepared for Hunt's attack. The older man lunged from the right, grabbing Michaels around the legs. He landed with a sickening thud, his gun flying backwards, which allowed Castle to pocket the weapon while Hunt wrestled the man into submission and secured his hands with zip ties.

"Where is she?" Castle seethed, his tone so deadly Hunt was even a bit taken aback.

Down the hall, Kate was leaning forward as far as her constraints would let her, the pain temporarily pushed to the back of her mind as she listened to the gun fire. She was certain she heard Castle's voice, but that couldn't be. He was in New York, right? Not wanting to miss the opportunity, she started yelling. After all, what did she have to lose?

"Kate?" she heard Rick respond. "Kate, I'm coming. I'm coming, Kate." Her heart leapt when she heard the sound. He was here. He was really here. They were going to have their happy ending after all. She could hear his footsteps quicken as he saw the open door at the end of the hallway. "Kate?" Her eyes were blurring with tears as she nodded, a little overcome for words. He approached her quickly, stepping over Stack's body without a second thought, and gently shoved some hair out of her eyes. Because he wasn't sure exactly where and how badly she was injured, he didn't want to risk hurting her further, so he kept his hands to himself even though he wanted to crush her in a tight embrace and never let go again.

"My wrists," she said quietly, her voice raspy from a combination of exhaustion, screaming and not drinking enough water. "There's a key in the side pocket of that bag." Castle quickly found the key and removed the cuff from her left wrist. As he moved to the right, he stalled his movements. Her wrist was hanging at a sickening angle, and each finger was purple around the knuckle joint. He suddenly wished he would have the opportunity to spend a few minutes alone with Michaels and make use of the some of the equipment in his bag.

"I'm going to be as gentle as possible," he assured as he gently began working on the second lock. Once her wrist was free, he fingered the mottled skin gently before laying it in her lap.

"I can't believe you're here," she said as she locked eyes with him. "Thank you."

"So, this is the famed Detective Beckett." A voice from the hallway startled them both, and Castle turned to find Jackson Hunt's large frame filling the doorway as he watched the two, who were so very obviously in love.

"Don't thank me," Castle chuckled. "I couldn't have done it without him. Kate, I'd like you to meet Jackson Hunt."

Kate's eyes widened as she noticed the very apparent similarities between the two men. This was the man from the sketch that they had tried to identify during Alexis's kidnapping. Jackson Hunt. Castle's father. "Mr. Hunt, it's a pleasure," Kate said with a smile.

"Likewise. I've got to run, kid," Hunt said, interrupting the quiet scene. "You know how it is. I made a call, though. The Deputy Director of the FBI should be here with a team within the next 15 minutes. Daniels has the file, so the official story is already on the record. All you need to focus on now is helping your girl here get better." Castle was disappointed, of course, but he really expected nothing less. With a nod and a smile, Jackson Hunt was gone. Castle was so preoccupied with Beckett that he failed to realize his father never told him who was really in charge of the killings.

Three hours later, Kate was sleeping soundly while Castle paced back and forth in front of her bed at Kaiser Permanente Capitol Hill Medical Center where she had been taken following her rescue. With the exception of a fairly severe concussion, her injuries were minor. The bones on her wrist and hands had been set, and the doctor was certain they would all heal properly. They were going to have to do further imaging on her foot, however, which might require surgery. It could have been so much worse, though, that Castle couldn't help but be thankful. After a brief call to Esposito, Kate had fallen into a deep sleep brought on by a combination of pain killers and exhaustion, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He couldn't help fixating on his father's words. Who was in charge? It wouldn't be long before they figured out that Beckett survived. How long did they have before they came for her again?


	8. Chapter 8

When Kate woke, sunlight was streaming through the window, alerting her to the fact that it must be morning or early afternoon. She was a little confused at first about her surroundings, but when she saw Castle sitting in the chair by the bed, finally snoozing himself, it all came rushing back to her. Though she was still a little foggy, she remembered being brought to the hospital and being roused every two hours or so by nurses who wanted to check on her, and she distinctly remembered her time with Michaels.

Experimentally moving her legs and arms to see what hurt and what range of motion she had, she pushed herself up into a sitting position, careful not to put too much pressure on her injured wrist. Her head was pounding, and her entire body ached. None of that really mattered, though. Her entire focus was on the sleeping man in the chair by her bed.

Subconsciously, Castle must have registered that Kate was staring at him because he woke a few minutes later. "That's creepy, Beckett," he teased, stealing her line. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better, but I'm okay. Thanks to you. How did you find me? Why weren't you in New York?" Castle got up and peered around the hall to make sure it was clear before answering her. There were two guards stationed outside the door, but they had been briefed on the situation. What he was about to tell Beckett wouldn't be news to them. Resuming his seat, Castle started at the beginning, outlining for Kate everything that happened over the course of the last 24 hours.

"I can't believe I was so blind," she said, shaking her head at her own stupidity. "He's been watching me this entire time. How did I miss that?"

"Don't beat yourself up, Kate. We both missed it. If I hadn't been gazing at the ceiling while I waited for the coffee to brew, I would never have known either."

Kate started to ask something else, but their conversation was interrupted by voices outside the door. "You can go through, Agent Daniels," she heard before the door opened.

"Look who's awake," Daniels said with a smile. "You gave us all quite a scare, Agent Beckett." Because she withheld so much information from her team regarding Bracken, she was a little afraid her time as a Special Agent was over. The fact that Daniels was here this early and using her title gave her hope that they might make an exception. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine."

"Good, so you're ready to get back to work on the Bracken case, then?"

"I thought…I mean, after last night, I figured you'd have everything you need."

"Bracken was arrested this morning, but as you can imagine, he's lawyered up and has already made bail. Don't worry," he continued when Beckett stiffened, her panic evident. "His bail is provisional. He's under 24-hour FBI surveillance. If he makes any kind of move, we'll know about it."

"And Michaels?"

"Michaels is being held without bail. He won't be seeing the light of day anytime soon."

"So, what do you need from me?"

"We checked Michaels's bank records. We were able to verify that he was on the Senator's payroll, but here's the odd thing. He was receiving even more money in payments from an offshore, untraceable bank account. The payments from Bracken began on July 8, and the payments from the untraceable account began a few days later."

"Could he have been working another job?"

"We found no evidence anywhere in his apartment to indicate that he was working on anything other than this assignment, and as you can imagine, he's not talking."

Castle thought back to his father's words. He wasn't quite ready to share, though. He wanted to talk to Beckett before he got the FBI involved.

"I got the impression that he was working for someone else," Kate said, surprising Castle. "Killing Stack...that couldn't have been part of the plan. If you think about it, the misappropriation charges were obviously a ploy to get to me. That would mean he forged the evidence we had, and he would need someone on the inside to help him. The Senator would want Stack alive. It doesn't make sense."

The men were quiet as they considered Kate's words. "Mr. Castle, I hear theories are your forte," Daniels said, inviting Castle into the discussion. "Have anything to share with the class?"

"No, not at this time."

"Well, since you're going to be working the case with us, I want to know if you think of anything."

"I'm on the case?"

"For some reason, yes. I got a call from the Attorney General this morning asking me to let you consult." Castle and Beckett shared a discrete look before refocusing on the task at hand. Hunt had pulled some strings. "Anyway, I will leave so you can get some rest. Do you know when you will be discharged?"

Kate looked to Castle, who she assumed had spoken with her doctors. "They wanted to do additional imaging on your foot to see how bad the break is. If you don't need surgery, you should be able to go home today. They only kept you last night for observation because of the concussion."

"Very good," Daniels said. "Let me know when you're going to be cleared for work. We still have a lot of loose ends that need tying."

"Spill it, Castle," Beckett demanded as soon as Daniels left and had closed the door behind him. Castle had never, ever given up an opportunity to spew a crazy theory or two.

"What?"

"Spill it. I know you. You're hiding something."

"I didn't want to bring this up in front of anyone until I spoke with you," Castle started, looking a little uneasy, "but this doesn't end with Bracken."

"What doesn't end with Bracken," Kate asked cautiously.

"My dad told me last night that Bracken is only second in command. He is the enforcer so to speak. His job was to make sure that secrets stay secret, and in return, he was offered whatever help he needed with his political career."

"So, who is in charge?"

"I don't know. He never told me. Our goal was to find you, and then, he needed to leave before the authorities arrived. I know my dad, though. He'll send a message. He sent me a message after Alexis was kidnapped to let me know he was alright."

"Still, we need to think this through on our own. We don't have much time."

"Okay," Castle said, taking the lead. "Let's start with what we know." He began ticking off all the facts that had come to light within the last few hours before pausing to consider what it all could mean. "Maybe Bracken's superior was upset about the deal he made with you."

"Then why wait until now? Why wouldn't he have come for me a year ago? Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Remember the night the news broke about Bracken running for President? I made an off-hand comment to you about how I still had nearly three years to catch him at something. If he's been watching me this entire time…"

"He would have gotten angry and decided you were a risk after all. That's why the anonymous tip came in the next day."

"That still doesn't explain why Michaels was working for two different people."

"It could," Castle said, his eyes lighting up in the adorable way they always do when he has an idea. "How did Bracken find Michaels? Michaels obviously isn't new to this type of work, and for the Senator to put him on the payroll, he must have come highly recommended."

"You think Michaels also works for Bracken's superior?"

"It makes sense. Consider this: Bracken's job was to enforce, but he didn't do his job. You saved his life, so he got soft. As long as he could prove you were no longer a threat, maybe his superior was willing to look the other way. When you made that comment, however, all bets were off. We know Michaels alerted Bracken, but what if he also alerted Bracken's superior?"

"So, you don't think Michaels was working for Bracken when I was kidnapped?"

"I think Bracken thought he was, but I think Michaels was two-timing him."

"Why wouldn't the superior just let Bracken handle things? And how does that explain Stack's death?"

Castle was quiet for a few minutes until his entire face lit up so brightly Kate could almost see the figurative light bulb. "When Michaels contacted whoever runs the show, Michaels probably told him that Bracken was handling it. Bracken, however, has failed to do so multiple times. His superior got inpatient, decided Bracken was incompetent and needed to be dealt with, and demanded to know Bracken's plan. So, Michaels gave him the rundown. The superior thinks it over and gives Michaels the go ahead, but also requests that he eliminate the one person in the Attorney General's office who knows that the misappropriation scandal was all a ruse. Michaels would kill Stack, the Attorney General's office would move forward with the investigation on Bracken, and with the evidence still in play, Bracken would go to prison. Problem one: solved. With Bracken taken care of, the only matters left would be you and the file. Michaels was supposed to torture you until you revealed the file's location, and then, kill you, retrieve the file and return it to Bracken's supervisor. It's perfect, Kate. The supervisor has the file, you're no longer a threat, and Bracken is rotting away in prison as punishment for not handling things."

"I don't know whether I should believe that you're crazy or simply an evil genius," Kate said teasingly, somewhat in awe of her partner and his consistent ability to detail long, convoluted theories that were right more times than they were wrong. "It is possible, I guess."

"Obviously, the identity of Bracken's superior is in the file. Do you still have the shredded papers?"

"The bag of papers is in a lockbox in a New York bank. But Castle, we pieced together the only pieces that seemed to fit. It would take months – years - to go through all those papers. Castle, will you run by my apartment and get me some clothes and my laptop?" Kate asked, changing gears. Her headache was getting worse by the second, and she needed a break.

"Sure," Rick said, kissing her forehead before he left. "Try and get some sleep, okay?"

Thirty minutes later, Castle arrived at Kate's apartment building. It was swarming with FBI agents, and he had to show his ID multiple times to even gain access to the entryway. The landlord was having a fit, but it was obvious that no one cared if they were an inconvenience. As he climbed the stairs to the third floor, the throng of people got thicker. The door to Kate's apartment was open, and all manners of crime solvers were there, including people from the FBI, CSU and the Washington PD. "I'm Richard Castle, Kate's fiance," he said, flashing his ID once again. "She asked me to come pick up her laptop and a change of clothes." After a brief conversation with his supervisor, the man moved to let Castle in. He was surprised to see Kate's laptop in an evidence bag, along with the camera. He would have asked what was going on, but his friend from the doorway had followed him and was making sure he did exactly what he said he had come to do: get some clothes and leave. After quickly throwing together an overnight bag for Beckett, Castle grabbed his own luggage before he was unceremoniously escorted out of the apartment. As he stood on the curb, trying to juggle the bags and hail a cab, his phone rang. Cursing he grabbed the offending device and almost ignored the call until he saw his mother's face smiling up at him. There was no telling what was on the news this morning, and his poor mother was probably worried sick.

"Richard," Martha's near hysterical voice sounded over the line, "what the hell is going on?"

"Mother, I can't get into it right now," he said, feeling quite guilty. "I can tell you that Kate and I are safe, but I'm going to be staying in Washington for the time being."

"Would it have killed you to call me and let me know you were okay?" she asked, her concern giving way to exasperation and a hint of anger.

"No. I'm sorry, Mother. I should have called. It's just been a crazy 12 hours." He was suddenly glad Alexis was in Costa Rica without access to Internet.

"I'm just so glad you and Katherine are alright," she said, her tone softening. "Listen, a package arrived for you about 10 minutes ago."

"A package?" Castle asked, his interest piqued.

"Yes, it's unmarked, so I thought it might be important. Do you want me to open it?"

"Please, but be careful since we don't know where it came from."

"Just a minute..." Martha said, putting the phone down so she could open the small parcel. "It's a copy of your newest Derrick Storm novel."

"Mother, this is very important," Castle said, suddenly on high alert. How had Hunt managed to get the book there so quickly? He must have known that Kate's apartment would be ransacked and Feds would be guarding her hospital room. The only option for delivery, then, had been the loft. He really was a super spy. "I need you to look for any words or markings, not just on the cover but inside the book as well."

"Okay..." Martha said, flipping through the pages. She was about to tell her son there was nothing until she flipped to the back cover. The book jacket had slipped down revealing some numbers. "Here it is," Martha said triumphantly. "It says, '1981, New York Senate, EL'. Does that mean anything to you, Richard?"

"Mother, I've got to go. Stay safe, and if Detectives Ryan and Esposito send someone to check on you, be nice." Without waiting for a goodbye, Castle quickly dialed Esposito.

"I need to know if there was a New York Senator in 1981 with the initials EL" Castle said, taking a quick guess as to what the message meant.

"Hello to you, too," Esposito teased. "You ought to be glad we're not working a case right now, bro. Let's see...in 1981, the New York Senator with the initials EL was Eric Leader."

Castle felt as though the world had suddenly closed in on him. Lockwood, Montgomery, Raglan - they weren't joking when they said this was big. But it made sense. Bracken's rise to power, his Presidential bid and his close ties with the current administration could all be attributed to this. Eric Leader was currently the Vice President of the United States.

**A/N: Thanks for reading. I hope everyone is having a great week so far.**


	9. Chapter 9

Previously:

_Castle felt as though the world had suddenly closed in on him. Lockwood, Montgomery, Raglan - they weren't joking when they said this was big. But it made sense. Bracken's rise to power, his Presidential bid and his close ties with the current administration could all be attributed to this. Eric Leader was currently the Vice President of the United States._

"Castle? Man, you there? Everything okay?" After finding the information for Castle, Esposito was met with silence. If it wasn't for the harsh breathing on the other side of the line, he would have thought Castle lost the call.

"Yeah, everything's fine," Castle croaked, trying to keep his voice as level as possible. "I've got to go, though. I'm almost to Beckett's room. I'll give you a call later." It was a lie; the hospital was still a good 15 minutes away, and D.C. traffic was at a standstill. But he needed a few minutes to regroup after that earth-shattering news. How was he going to tell Beckett that the Vice President of the United States – a man whose ticket she most likely voted for – was behind the conspiracy? And how was he going to convince the Feds that the Vice President was involved? After all, he had no real concrete evidence. The Attorney General's office was going to want more than a cryptic message scribbled into the back of one of his novels.

Castle was still deeply in thought when the cab pulled up outside the hospital. The cab driver had to point out several times that they had stopped before Castle finally snapped out of his daze, threw a wad of bills over the partition separating the front and back seats and grabbed their bags. As he walked down the large, white, antiseptic hospital corridor, Castle felt a growing knot form in the pit of stomach. Part of him wished he could travel back in time six years ago to the day when he asked Esposito to retrieve Beckett's mother's file from the evidence room. While he wouldn't give up the past year with Kate for anything, he suddenly felt an uncharacteristic wave of hopelessness. If he had never meddled, maybe they wouldn't be in this situation now.

When Castle finally reached Beckett's room, he dropped the bags in panic when he realized it was empty. Kate was gone, and her FBI-appointed bodyguards were also nowhere to be found. "My girlfriend…she was in room 404, and…"

"Relax," a nurse instructed a very harried Castle as he ran down the corridor searching for anyone who might know something as to why Kate wasn't in her room. "She's fine. They took her down to imaging about 30 minutes ago to get some additional pictures of her injured foot. Her bodyguards accompanied her. They should all be back in a few minutes, and if all is well, she should be discharged within the next couple of hours."

"Thank you," Castle said, a little embarrassed by his panicked outburst. He wished more than anything they were getting on a plane and heading back to New York this afternoon, but they couldn't leave now. The Four Seasons would have to do.

"Hey, Castle," Kate said with a small smile, as they wheeled her back from imaging. She looked tired and sore, but a little more alert than when he left.

"Hey, I brought you some clothes," he said, feigning cheerfulness. "Want me to help you get dressed?"

"Please."

"Here are your favorite yoga pants, and I also brought your purple sleep shirt. Is that okay, or would you rather wear something else?"

"That's fine. Did you bring everything in my closet?" she asked with a chuckle, gesturing to her overnight bag, which was stuffed to the hilt.

"Your apartment looked like a crime scene," Castle said, wincing. "Until you find another place, I thought we could stay at the Four Seasons."

"Castle, we don't have to stay somewhere so fancy. Are you okay?" On the surface, he was acting normally, but he had some very obvious tells. For one, his leg was bouncing up and down, something he only did when he was bored or anxious, and he was, unknowingly, avoiding eye contact.

"I need to tell you something," he whispered. "But not here. Let's wait until we're settled in our hotel, okay?"

"Castle, you're scaring me. Did you talk to our family in New York? Is everyone okay?"

"Everyone is fine, Kate. It's nothing like that. I promise."

With a slight nod, Kate agreed to let it go for the time being, and the pair lapsed into silence while they waited for the final visit from Kate's doctor. Fortunately, the break in her foot wasn't as bad as they initially thought, and she was going to get away with wearing a boot for the next eight weeks. It wasn't something she was looking forward to, but it was definitely better than surgery and also beat a plaster cast that couldn't be removed at night or while she was in the shower.

"We're settled now, Castle," Kate said two hours later as they sat on the couch in their spacious hotel room and dined on room service. "What did you want to tell me?"

Castle started several times but stopped before the words were out. He had no idea how Kate was going to handle this news, especially considering her head injury and the emotional, stressful events of the past 24 hours. "On my way back to the hospital, I got a call from Mother. An unmarked package had just been delivered for me, so I had her open it. After Alexis was kidnapped, my dad sent me a novel that we had discussed in Paris to let me know he survived. In the parcel was a copy of my newest Derrick Storm novel, which I dedicated to my dad, so I knew it couldn't have been a coincidence."

"And?" Kate prodded. "Was there a message?"

"There was."

"Well, spit it out," she said, her patience wearing thin.

"The message said '1981, New York Senate, EL'. I took it to mean that he was leading me to a former senator whose initials were EL."

"Was there a 1981 senator with those initials?"

"Yeah, Eric Leader."

"Eric Leader? The Vice President of the United States?" Kate asked, horrified.

"The one and only."

"I don't understand. Why would the Vice President be involved? It doesn't make sense…it doesn't…" She started rambling, her words so rushed and panicked, Castle couldn't even quite make out what she was trying to say.

"Kate, focus," Castle said, as he tried to get her attention in hopes of preventing a full-blown panic attack. "Look at me. You're okay. You're safe. We're going to get through this." The last time she had appeared this haunted they were in the middle of a sniper case, and he had nearly lost Kate at the bottom of a rabbit hole. He couldn't let that happen again.

"I thought I was doing the right thing," she said, the tears finally spilling over. "I thought we were finally reaching the end. But it's never going to be over is it?"

"Shhh," Castle said, abandoning his lunch and gently pulling Kate into his arms, careful to avoid her injured extremities. "Why don't you lie down for a little while, okay? We can put this in the fridge to warm up later."

"I can't lie down, Rick. We have work to do. We have to call Daniels…"

"Kate, you heard the doctor. You've got a concussion and need to rest. Please do this for me. I'll work while you're sleeping."

She finally acquiesced and fell into an uneasy sleep a few minutes later. Moving into the chair opposite the couch, Castle watched her for a long time before he finally got out his laptop and began doing some research. Ever the optimist, Castle had to consider that there was a small chance they had misread the message; maybe Eric Leader wasn't involved after all. After spending more than an hour researching Bracken, Leader and their mutual connections, though, he realized that the Senator's relationship with the Vice President dated back to 1979 when they appeared to meet for the first time at a fundraiser for the NYPD. The goal of the fundraiser had been to raise funds for the addition of a task force devoted solely to organized crime that specifically targeted the four big mob families that ran the city at the time. There was no way in hell it could have been a coincidence.

"Did you find something?" Kate asked sleepily as she watched Castle's facial expressions become progressively more serious.

He wanted to lie, wanted to shield her from the stark truth, but they had both promised to quit keeping secrets. "Look at this," he said, moving to sit on the floor in front of Beckett so she didn't have to get up. "I found an electronic copy of the NY Ledger from 1979. These photos are from a fundraiser Leader and Bracken attended for the NYPD."

"Up-and-coming New York political leaders are looking to establish a task force with the initial purpose of investigating organized crime…" Kate whispered as she read an excerpt from the opening paragraph. "Castle, this can't be a coincidence."

"I know."

"We've got to call Daniels."

"And tell him what, Kate? That I found an incriminating, cryptic message left by my long-lost father in a copy of my own book? I'll be off the case before the words are out of my mouth. We need to think this through first."

Kate was a little taken aback by Castle's sudden outburst, but she had to admit he had a point. Sighing, she decided her head injury must be to blame for her sudden lack of judgement. It wasn't often that Castle was the voice of reason. "We can start by explaining Bracken's role in the kidnapping scheme that resulted in the death of an undercover FBI agent," Kate said quietly. "Since we know Bracken was committed to curbing mob activity in the early-to-mid 1980s, it wouldn't be a stretch for us to consider all of the associates he worked with during that time. His superior would have to be someone of status, so…"

"Sounds like we're ready to make that call," Castle said, passing Kate her cell phone.

"I guess. Here goes nothing."

Forty-five minutes later, Agent Daniels arrived, accompanied by four other agents from the Attorney General's office. Before introducing themselves, they moved quickly through the space, searching for bugs or any other types of surveillance equipment. "Agent Beckett, Mr. Castle, I'd like to introduce you to the rest of the task force that will be helping us with the Bracken investigation," Daniels started once they were satisfied that there was no one listening in to their conversation. "Please meet Agent Angela Rodriguez, Agent Jim Holmes, Agent Ben Harper and Agent Pete Neff. I understand you found something."

Taking a deep breath, Kate launched into the rehearsed speech that she and Castle had prepared.

"That's quite a stretch, don't you think?" Rodriguez asked from her perch in the chair opposite Kate after a few minutes of silence. "Most New York politicians are concerned with stopping organized crime, and in the late 1970s and early 1980s, New York City was like the Wild, Wild West. They had a sizeable mob problem on their hands."

"I think it might be worth a second look actually," Daniels interjected. "Angela, you're right. It is a stretch. But we know Michaels was working for someone with means and opportunity. From the articles and photos here, we can surmise that Eric Leader was Bracken's only acquaintance during that time who is still involved in politics. Granted, we will need to delve more thoroughly than a Google search, but I think it is worth investigating."

"What are our next steps, then?" Kate asked eagerly, thankful that someone was willing to take a leap of faith and believe their crazy theory.

"Your next step is to focus on healing, so you can be cleared for active duty as quickly as possible. In the meantime, we will delve a little further into this lead and request permission to install some surveillance equipment. We'll follow the same path we followed at the beginning of the Bracken investigation. Until we know exactly what we're dealing with, it's going to be best to lie low for a while."

Kate nodded and took a breath to calm her nerves while Castle saw the team of agents out. "Why do I feel like I just walked into a bad spy film?" she asked, gently rubbing her aching forehead.

"Because I think we just did," Castle laughed. "Can I get you anything?"

"No. Lie down with me for a few minutes, okay?" she asked as she got up and began limping towards the bedroom.

"Of course. You know, we never did finish our wedding conversation from the other night," Castle said, trying to steer her thoughts towards lighter, happier topics. "Spring or fall?"

"Spring, but Castle?"

"Yeah?"

"I want to get married as soon as this is over. I don't want to wait until we can set a date. I don't need a fancy wedding. All I want is to be your wife. I would marry you today, but I want our families - at least Martha, Alexis and Jim - to be a part of this. Promise me that we'll get married as soon as we can go home."

Kate was staring up at him with so much love shining in her hazel orbs it almost stole Castle's breath. "I promise," he said shakily. Even though they were currently gearing up for the fight of their lives, Castle felt a small sliver of hope start to weave through his thoughts. They had each other. They had love. And Castle had to believe that, at the end of the day, it would be enough.

**A/N: Thanks again for reading!**


	10. Chapter 10

It had been three days since Castle received the message from Hunt, and the team was still struggling to make a definitive connection between Bracken and the Vice President. In true Beckett fashion, Kate had stubbornly insisted on going back to work the day after her hospital discharge, and she had been working herself to the bone ever since. Even though Castle thought she should slow down and take a break, he could only imagine how she must be feeling right now. The case had unearthed demons Kate thought she had finally put to rest, and she was struggling, both mentally and physically.

"Damn it," she cried after her third attempt at fastening the buttons on her blazer. She was completely over both the cast on her wrist and boot on her foot and just wanted everything to return to normal.

"Let me help," Castle said, approaching her slowly. She hated being dependent on others more than anything and had been taking her frustration out on Rick more times than not. He hadn't said anything, though. He just let her vent, knowing that it wasn't personal.

"I hate this."

"I know. Here," he said, handing her the to-go mug of coffee that had arrived with their breakfast tray. She had been feeling a little shaky this morning, so she eyed the beverage warily. If she drank the coffee, it might make her nerves worse. "It's decaf," Castle assured, sensing her internal struggle. With a grateful nod, she accepted the warm beverage.

"You've got to stay positive, Kate," Castle said as they approached the Justice Department. "You can't let them win." A little cloud had settled over Kate around noon yesterday when the Attorney General rejected their warrant request, and it was ever present this morning. "It's only been a couple of days."

"Good morning," Daniels greeted when Kate and Rick arrived on the tech floor a few minutes later. Castle's jaw had nearly hit the floor the first time he had walked into the high-tech space, but by now, he had grown used to the vast array of gadgets. When this was put to bed and they were finally able to return home to the precinct, with its dated computers and white boards, he was going to think he had traveled back in time.

"Morning," Kate said with a small smile. On Kate's desk, she had constructed a small murder board of sorts, with names, dates and photos all linking Bracken and the Vice President. It wasn't enough, though. As the Attorney General had pointed out yesterday when he rejected the warrant request, it was all circumstantial. Did it look suspicious? Yes. But the fact that they were close working acquaintances during the correct time window didn't prove anything. Both men had myriad other contacts and acquaintances during that time, as well.

Willing the answers to appear magically in front of her, Kate settled herself in front of her photos and began to walk through the evidence they had once more. On the other side of the space, Daniels was looking through photo and video archives with a techie. Their other team members were off working on other things. "We need the file, Castle," Kate whispered quietly. "I know I said that we didn't have time to go through all of those papers, but I'm starting to think it's our only chance."

As much as Castle relished the idea of a weekend at the loft, he was afraid to leave Washington. Kate had a target on her back, and as long as she was in D.C., she had federal protection. As soon as they left, they would be sitting ducks. "We can't leave, Kate. It's not safe."

"We don't have a choice. They're going to win, Castle. If we can't find the evidence to support our claim, they're going to win." She sank back into her chair with tears in her eyes while Castle tried to think of a solution. They were both brought out of their thoughts a few minutes later when Agent Rodriguez came running over to Beckett's desk.

"We have a name on the bank account," she yelled triumphantly.

"I thought the account was determined untraceable," Daniels said, confusion and hope in his voice, as he joined the huddle.

"The offshore account is completely untraceable," Rodriguez agreed. "But I did find something. On a whim, I had tech run the account number through the U.S. database. The same numbers appeared on a U.S. account that was closed in 1987. The account belonged to an elderly woman named Mary Tidmore, who died that same year."

"Does Mary Tidmore have any relation to Bracken or the Vice President?" Kate asked as she stared at the page in front of her.

"Indirectly."

"Define indirectly," Kate said with bated breath.

"We did a background search on Mary Tidmore. She was the maternal grandmother of the Vice President's wife, Melanie."

"That can't be a coincidence," Castle whispered quietly.

"Is that enough? Can we do something with that?"

"Possibly," Daniels said. "It should be enough for us to be able to request Mary Tidmore's financial records."

"The account was closed more than 20 years ago. Wouldn't those records have been destroyed by now?" Castle asked, sensing they had reached another dead end.

"Not necessarily. Banks are required to keep records on file for at least 5 years if the account had more than $100 in it at any point while it was open. After that, the records become archived. They never actually disappear."

"I didn't know that," Castle said, impressed.

"See, working with us does have some benefits," Daniels said with a smile. "Come on, let's go talk to the Attorney General."

Two hours later, after heated discussions with both the Attorney General and representatives from JP Morgan & Chase Company, the sealed bank account records belonging to the late Mary Tidmore were finally on their way. While Kate was still feeling pessimistic, the thought of having at least _something_ to look into was making her feel a little better.

"Here we go," Daniels announced when he finally received the archive link. "There are more than 15 years' worth of records here. According to this news article I found, Leader met his wife in 1981, the same year he was elected to the Senate, and they married in 1984. So, let's start with the year 1981. If we feel we need to go back further than that, we can." Daniels printed off six years' worth of records and divided them evenly among the team members. From the stacks of papers in front of them, it looked like they had a long day and night ahead. Still, if they were able to find even one glimmer of evidence, it would be worth it.

"When did Mary Tidmore die?" Kate asked for a point of reference. Her stack included January 1986 through December 1987; the account was closed on December 12, 1987.

"Mary Tidmore died on January 23, 1987," Rodriguez replied helpfully, referencing the information from their background request.

"Why would the account have been kept open for nearly a year after her death?" Kate asked quietly so only Castle would hear.

"Maybe they had to probate the will," Castle supplied. Digging into the evidence in front of them, they worked quickly and quietly, not even bothering to acknowledge their growling stomachs. At 6:30, Daniels and the rest of the team decided to call it a night. Castle hoped Kate would do the same, but she was insistent.

"We're going to stay and work a while longer," Kate said. "I want to know by the end of the evening if this is a bust or not."

"Suit yourself," Daniels said with a shrug. Kate watched the rest of the agents file out until she and Castle were the only ones left in the space. As soon as they were gone, Kate grabbed the stack of papers she had put in what Castle had assumed was the discard pile and began making copies. There was a devilish gleam in her eyes, which could only mean one thing.

"What are you doing?" Castle asked.

"Making copies," Kate said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"You found some…"

"Not here," she mouthed harshly to quiet him. "I didn't fine anything. My head just hurts," she said, loudly, her tone returning to normal. "I'm making copies, so we can take these forms home to look through. I also need to ice my foot."

"Is that allowed?" Castle asked, playing along.

"Rodriguez was taking evidence home. I saw her walk out of here with a folder. It's fine, Castle. No one will mind. We used to work from home on NYPD cases all the time, remember?" Rick marveled both at his girlfriend's intelligence and acting abilities. He knew exactly what she was doing. She had found something of note, and she was making herself a copy just in case the evidence had a way of disappearing. She was stating loudly for the record, though, that she was just tired and wanted to work from the comfort of their hotel in case anyone caught wind of what she was doing. Grabbing a file folder from the supply table, Kate shoved the contents inside and put the folder in her bag, along with a few scrap pieces of paper, a pen and a highlighter. She then placed the original, unmarked files from the bank on her desk in a neat stack.

"Are you going to take your stack home?" Kate asked. To anyone else, the conversation seemed completely innocent, but Castle and Beckett had always possessed an uncanny ability to speak volumes in subtext. _"Did you find_ _anything?"_

"Should I?" _"No, I didn't find anything of note in my stack."_

"It's up to you. If you want, you can just help me finish these tonight, and then, I'll help you with your stack in the morning." _"I'm just blabbing for the record in case we're being watched. This is a government building after all."_

"Sounds good. We'll get through the stacks faster that way. You ready?" The pair linked hands and headed out, and their little charade continued – and even involved a quick stop for takeout - until they reached the privacy of their hotel room.

"What did you find?" Castle asked, the takeout abandoned on the table. He was too excited to eat.

"Food first," Kate said, feeling lightheaded. They ate quickly and quietly, and once Kate felt a little more grounded, she pulled out the papers and lined them up on the table in order, beginning with March 1986 and ending with December 1987. Castle noticed she had also made a copy of the background report for Mary Tidmore. "Mary Tidmore entered a nursing home in February 1986 after suffering a stroke," Kate explained, referencing the background report. "Melanie's parents both died in a car accident in 1978, and she had no siblings. She was the sole heir of Tidmore's estate, which didn't include much, except for an apartment in upper Manhattan and $20,000 in savings."

"Okay," Castle said, not quite sure where Kate was going with this.

"In February, when Mary suffered the stroke, Melanie was granted power of attorney, which allowed her access to Mary's financial assets. After Melanie received power of attorney, Mary's savings and checking accounts were drained, most likely to pay for her medical care. For a month, the account was dormant, and there were no deposits coming in or out. Look at what started happening in April 1986."

Kate sat back while Rick reached for the papers on the table in front of him. Kate was right; on February 17, Melanie was granted power of attorney, and the checking account was drained of its contents. It remained at a zero balance until April 3, when a $10,000 deposit was made to the account. The deposit was made via a check, which came from Sal's Furniture. Subsequent checks continued to come in during the next 20 months, varying in amounts as low as $4500 and as high as $15,000. "Look at this," Kate said, referencing several phone calls from the bank. "Apparently, the bank thought the cashing of these checks was suspicious. Bank representatives made contact with Melanie four times throughout the 20-month period, and she acknowledged the checks and said they were donations from local businesses Tidmore supported to help pay for Tidmore's nursing care and final expenses."

"Sal's Furniture is still in business. I bought a custom-made mahogany table that I use in the Hamptons house there."

"And who owns Sal's furniture?"

"Sal Marconi."

"Sal Marconi, legacy of...?"

"Vinnie Marconi, the infamous leader of the Marconi family, which has been linked to mob activity since 1948. God, Kate, what the hell did we just stumble into?" Castle asked, feeling uneasy.

"Do you see why I made the copies? I couldn't risk this getting away." Buzzing with energy, Kate began pacing in front of the little dinette table where everything was laid out. "So, it looks like they procured between $9,000 and $30,000 per kidnap. I guess the price was dependent on the role the victim played within the family."

"How do you figure they made between $9,000 and $30,000?"

"Money was being deposited into two accounts - Bracken's and Tidmore's. I assume, being the 'boss,' Leader kept his entire share, and Bracken paid the cops doing the grunt work out of his. I guess, when the bank continued to grow more and more suspicious, Leader closed Tidmore's account and established the off-shore account using the same account number for ease of receiving ransom payments. Because Tidmore was Melanie's maternal grandmother, she wouldn't have even shared Melanie's maiden name, so I guess he thought he was safe."

"It makes sense," Castle agreed. "Let's try and establish a timeline. The Ledger article I found was from 1979, which is when Bracken and Leader met. They were trying to establish a task force to investigate organized crime, but it appeared to be a bust. The NYPD must have used the money for other purposes because there was no record of a task force ever being developed."

"Right," Kate said, picking up where Castle left off. "In 1981, Leader was elected to the Senate. He met his wife and then later married in 1984. During that time, he continued to become closer to Bracken. The two moved within similar social circles, and we know Leader gave Bracken a position on his staff. Behind the scenes, they were cooking up this kidnapping scheme, which seemed to take off in 1986. It continues until 1992 when things go south because Montgomery, Raglan and McCallister inadvertently tried to kidnap an undercover federal agent, which resulted in the agent's death. They pin the murder on Joe Pulgotti, and all of the evidence is thought to be erased. However, without anyone else knowing, Montgomery must have made a copy of the original file just in case he needed leverage, which must have been the file he sent to Smith before he died to keep me safe. With the evidence of their scheme gone, Bracken and Leader rest easy for six years until my mom was hired by Pulgotti to reopen his case. Her murder was written off by Raglan as random violence, and everyone rests easy once again until Coonan entered our precinct, cuing the events of the last four years."

Drained from this little exercise, Kate plopped back into her chair. "How are we going to get anyone to believe us?" Castle asked.

"I think we now have enough evidence to at least state our case," Kate said quietly. "I just don't know who we can trust."

* * *

While Kate and Castle were working through the evidence and trying to determine who in this twisted game they could trust, Agent Jacob Daniels was having dinner with his wife and daughter. They were just about to have dessert when the doorbell sounded. Perplexed, he answered the door and nearly fell over when he saw two security guards from the Vice President's entourage standing on his porch.

"Can I help you?" Daniels asked, nervously.

"The Vice President has requested a meeting," the man on the right answered.

"When?"

"Tonight."

"I'm sorry, but I am off duty," Daniels said, trying to stand his ground. "I will be back on shift tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. I can meet with him then."

"He is leaving tomorrow morning on business and will be gone the rest of the week," guard number two answered. "This is his only opportunity to speak with you."

"Jake," he heard his wife, Julie, call from the dining room. "Is everything okay?"

"Give me a minute," he said to the guards. "Everything's fine, honey," he directed towards his wife who had entered the room and was now staring at the closed front door curiously. "I'm going to have to go into work for a while, but I shouldn't be terribly long." She nodded understandingly, no stranger to the long hours her husband was often required to work. "Give Chloe a kiss for me if I'm not home before she goes to bed, okay?"

She nodded and turned to head back to the dining room while Daniels took a deep breath and opened the front door. "Lead the way," he said quietly.


	11. Chapter 11

Agent Jacob Daniels had experienced his fair share of scary situations. After graduating from college with a degree in criminal justice, he had entered the FBI Academy and had worked his way up the ranks. He had shown special promise early on and had been recruited for this select investigative team a little over a year ago. During his time both as an FBI Agent and as a member of the Attorney General's select team, he had been in numerous life-or-death scenarios. None of them compared to the fear he was currently experiencing as he sat in the backseat of a black Escalade that was tearing across the Washington freeway at lightning speed on the way to visit the Vice President of the United States.

He thought they had been careful. They were discrete; hell, they hadn't even installed their surveillance equipment yet. How did the Vice President know they were on to him? _Maybe_, Daniels rationalized,_ he didn't_. Maybe he was spooked since the FBI currently had Michaels in custody. Maybe this was nothing more than a fishing expedition, with the end goal of finding out what the Attorney General's office knew. _That's all it is,_ Daniels told himself as the Escalade started to slow. _He just wants to know what we know. That's it._ With one last shaky breath, Daniels steeled his nerves for the meeting to come. If he looked nervous, he would blow the whole thing.

* * *

"You don't trust the task force?" Castle asked after several minutes of silence. He and Kate were still sitting in their dining room chairs, the papers still haphazardly ordered on the dinette table.

"I trusted Stack," Kate said wryly. "Look at how well that turned out for me."

"My dad sent the information to Daniels," Castle said. "If he wasn't to be trusted, my dad wouldn't have sent him that file."

"Should I call him?" Kate asked.

"It's your call. At this point, I think he's the only chance we have." Kate nodded and reached for her phone. Scrolling through the menu, she found the number for the team member she had yet to add to speed dial. Feeling as though she was jumping off the deep end, she pressed call. The line went straight to voicemail.

"His phone is off," Kate said, perplexed.

"That doesn't mean anything, Kate," Castle said, sensing her panic. "Maybe his phone died and he didn't realize it. Or, maybe he's spending time with his family. Some people take their 9-to-5 hours seriously and leave work at work."

Rolling her eyes at Castle's not-so-subtle 'you work too hard' comment, she set her phone down and noted the time. In 30 minutes, she'd try him again.

* * *

Daniels was hoping they were going to have the meeting in the Vice President's West Wing office. The White House was always bustling with press correspondents, security, staff, etc., which meant there would be plenty of witnesses. He felt his heart rate kick up a notch when they arrived at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Even though the building was located adjacent to the White House, it appeared to be fairly deserted at this hour.

"Hand me your cell phone," guard number one commanded as soon as they exited the vehicle. Hesitantly, Daniels offered up his phone, which the guard promptly turned off before pocketing. He was then escorted into the giant architectural monument with one guard on each arm. The Vice President's office was everything Daniels imagined it would be. Large, spacious and intimidating, he felt like he was about 2 feet tall as he stood in front of the Vice President's desk waiting for the man to make his appearance.

"The Vice President will see you now," guard number two said as he opened a door leading to the Vice President's personal quarters. A tall man with graying hair, Eric Leader exuded a kind, confident aura. Though Daniels had never had the opportunity to meet the man in person, he had always liked him and had even voted for the current administration in the last election. This current scandal was making him rethink every election decision he'd ever made.

"Agent Daniels," Leader said with a smile. "Thank you for seeing me on such short notice."

"Of course, Sir," Daniels said, reaching across the large mahogany desk to shake the Vice President's hand.

"This will be a friendly conversation," Leader said, addressing his two security guards. "You may leave us." With a nod, each of the guards filed out the door, leaving the two men alone. "Can I interest you in a drink, Agent Daniels?" Leader asked, gesturing to a large glass decanter filled with whiskey.

"No, thank you," Daniels said politely, wishing he'd just cut to the point.

"Please sit down. Make yourself comfortable." Leaders gestured to a large leather office chair as he filled a whiskey glass full. He then sat down in his own chair, fixing Daniels with an unreadable expression. "You're probably wondering why I asked you to see me this evening."

"Actually, yes…"

"I understand that you recently arrested Senator Bracken for a variety of charges, including murder, the kidnapping of a federal agent, conspiracy to commit murder and misappropriation of funds, to name a few."

"That's correct," Daniels said, his slightly wavering voice giving his nervousness away.

"And, you have in your custody a man named Everitt Michaels who you believed helped the Senator spy on, kidnap and torture a federal agent?"

"Yes," Daniels whispered again, not quite sure where the older man was going with his train of thought.

"Has it occurred to you that this could all have been a ruse to frame the Senator?"

"Excuse me?" Daniels asked, surprised by the conversation's new direction.

"Senator Bracken has spoken with me before about Katherine Beckett, the agent who was supposedly kidnapped. Doesn't it seem odd to you that this is the first accusation that has been made against Senator Bracken in an otherwise stellar, spotless 33-year political career? Doesn't it seem odd to you that Agent Stack, a man who had devoted six years of his life to the Attorney General's team, would all of a sudden go rogue and turn against his team?"

"I…" Daniels stopped mid-speech to try and gather his thoughts. Now that he had a few minutes to really consider the evidence, it did seem suspicious. In fact, the file containing the evidence they had against Bracken had arrived in an unmarked envelope and the source of the information still hadn't been determined. Still, he had been there the night Kate was rescued. She was scared, in pain and hurt. There was no way she had done that to herself. Plus, Michaels's fingerprints were the only set of prints on the gun that killed Stack. "We are still in the beginning stages of our investigation," Daniels stated cautiously. "Obviously, we are examining the evidence on hand very carefully. We understand what is at stake, Sir. I can promise you this isn't some sort of witch hunt. We have tried to keep our investigation as quiet as possible, and Senator Bracken will be given a fair trial. Our goal is not to ruin his political career. Our goal is to either clear his name or ensure that, if found guilty, he serves his time like any other United States citizen."

Leader was still regarding him with an unreadable expression, but there was a coldness behind his eyes that Daniels didn't remember seeing when he first walked in the door. This wasn't going his way, and the Vice President was getting frustrated.

"All I'm saying, Agent Daniels, is I think the Attorney General's office would be better off investigating their own personnel before they begin slinging accusations at political leaders."

"Mr. Vice President, with all due respect, I can assure you there has been no 'slinging' involved."

"Well, I certainly hope not. I would hate to see your promising career end due to false information." Daniels wasn't sure how to respond to the Vice President's last comment, so he kept quiet. The Vice President, unfazed by the silence, poured himself another drink and took a long sip before he finally spoke again. "After all, Agent Daniels, you're the leader of this investigation. It's your name and your reputation on the line. You'd do well to remember that."

"I've never forgotten it, Sir," Daniels said. "Like I said, we are doing everything in our power to…"

"Enough," the Vice President said, his tone rising in exasperation. "You and I are sitting in this room alone. There are no cameras and no witnesses. If you tell anyone about this conversation, it will be a case of your word against mine, and I can assure you no one will believe a federal agent over the Vice President of the United States. Here's how this is going to work. You are going to launch an investigation against Kate Beckett. You are going to find that she framed the Senator, orchestrated her own kidnapping and ordered Michaels to kill Stack. Senator William Bracken will walk a free man with an untarnished reputation, and this never, ever will get back to me. Do we have an understanding?" When Daniels failed to speak, the Vice President continued. "Trust me, Agent Daniels. It is in your best interest to agree to my terms."

"Why's that?" Daniels asked. "I can assure you my career is not worth what you are asking me to do."

"Let me tell you what I know about you, shall I? You live at 4568 Continental Drive on the east side of the city. You drive a Toyota Prius. You have been married to your wife, Julie, for six years, and you have one daughter, Chloe, who will begin kindergarten this year. Tomorrow morning at 9:30, Julie and Chloe are going to be attending a get-to-know-you breakfast for kindergarten students and their teachers at your daughter's new school. After the event, your wife will take Chloe home, and Megan, the babysitter who lives next door, will come over to stay with your daughter for the remainder of the day. Julie will work a half-day at her job as an insurance broker, and tomorrow evening, after a hard day of work, you, your wife and your daughter will settle around the dining room table for a family meal. All of that will go exactly according to plan if you agree to my terms. If you don't, well, let's just say there's a good possibility that your daughter and wife will not make it home from their little get together. Am I making myself clear?"

"Crystal," Daniels said, surprised he was able to speak at all around the lump in his throat.

"Good. Now, do we have an agreement?"

"Yes," Daniels gritted out. "We have an agreement."

"First thing tomorrow, I want you to raid the hotel room at The Four Seasons where Kate Beckett and her partner are staying for the time being. You will find this file in Kate Beckett's things," Leader said, passing Daniels a file that was stuffed so full it had to be held closed by a rubber band. "This file will give you enough evidence to make an arrest and launch an investigation." Nodding dumbly, Daniels accepted the file. "It was nice talking with you, Agent Daniels. Please see yourself out."

Daniels hid the file underneath his coat, which he draped over his arm. As he left the office, the guards handed him his cell phone before filing back in to their posts. It was glaringly clear that no one gave any thought as to how he was going to get home. Taking a deep breath, Daniels hid in the stairwell and quickly scrawled a phone number on the back of an old receipt he found in his pants pocket before erasing every piece of data stored on his iPhone, basically restoring it to factory settings. He then threw the device in the trash and quickly exited, running down the stairs and away from the building as quickly as possible.

As he walked aimlessly, he looked for a payphone. Looking over his shoulder, he knew he was clear; no one was following him. They would know by morning if he carried out his mission or not, so what was the point? He finally found a lone pay phone sitting in the parking lot of a fairly decrepit gas station a mile and a half away from the White House. Picking his pockets for change, he found enough quarters to make a call. If an innocent woman was going to be framed for a federal crime, she at least needed a heads up.

"Beckett," a tired female voice answered warily.

"It's Daniels. You need to leave the city."

"What? Where are you? Why are you calling me from this number?"

"I don't have time for questions," he said sullenly, wishing he had never met this detective from New York. If he hadn't, his life wouldn't be such a mess right now. "Tomorrow morning, your hotel room is going to be raided. You can't be there when that happens. You need to get out of Washington and go somewhere where you can lay low for a while."

Before Kate had a chance to respond, the line went dead.

"What's wrong?" Castle asked.

"We need to leave," Kate said quietly. "Tonight. Now. We need to leave."

"Kate, who was on the phone?"

"Daniels. He said there's going to be a raid in this room tomorrow morning and that we can't be here when that happens."

"Okay, then," Castle said, faking calm for Kate's sake. On the inside, he felt like a tornado had just been unleashed. "Let's make sure we're not."

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and who is reading/following this story. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I can't believe tomorrow's Monday already.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: I am so sorry for the delay. I have been busy with other projects, but I do promise to update more regularly from here on out.**

For a few minutes, both Castle and Beckett stood stock still in the middle of the room. Finally, Beckett snapped out of her daze and moved to the in-room safe where she was storing a little tin box that was accessible only by key. Two days ago, when she'd finally been allowed inside her apartment to pack a few essentials, she grabbed clothes, shoes and the small box. Everything else was being stored until she relocated to a more permanent location. Castle had asked what was in the box, and she told him she used it to store family heirlooms and jewelry, which is why she wanted to put it in the hotel room safe. At the time, he didn't question her, but now, he suspected there was more to the story. He couldn't help but follow her as she carried the box into the bathroom and began rummaging through her makeup bag. At the bottom of the cosmetic bag was a small tube of lipstick, and Castle couldn't help his surprise when, instead of lipstick, a key appeared when she opened the tube. She expertly opened the tin box using the key, returned the key to its home and began pulling out plastic bags filled with what appeared to be IDs and other official documents.

"What's all this?" Castle asked warily.

"In the back of my mind, I guess I always suspected that Bracken would renege on our deal. When that happened, I wanted to make sure that we were safe, so I phoned a friend. You aren't the only one with connections." She smiled weakly, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. Castle warily accepted the bag she was offering and opened it. Inside were a fake ID and passport belonging to a man named Daniel Hogue. The man in the photo could have easily been Castle if Castle had green eyes and a bit of facial hair. Realization dawned as he turned the documents over in his hands. Beckett had false identities created in case they ever needed to flee. "You think this is crazy, don't you?" Kate asked when Castle failed to respond.

"No, not at all. I'm just surprised. I always figured I'd be the one supplying the illegal documents," he said with a humorless chuckle.

"I also had an ID made for my dad. After Alexis's kidnapping and the reappearance of your father, I got IDs for Alexis and Martha, too, just in case." Castle was completely baffled and more than a little touched by the fact that Kate had gone so far as to ensure safety for the rest of his family. For now, he knew that his mom and Alexis were fine, but if needed, they'd now also have the option of disappearing for a while.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Castle asked.

"I didn't want to scare you," Kate said honestly. "I didn't want you to think that I knew something you didn't regarding the deal or our security. These were a worst-case scenario investment. I had hoped that we'd never have to use them."

Over the next hour, Beckett and Castle spent time transforming into their alter egos. Kate had everything they needed, including makeup to give Castle the appearance of a scruffy beard, a blonde wig and blue and green contacts. "I gained a lot of experience transforming into different characters when I worked Vice," she explained as she expertly applied Castle's makeup. "I was a different person just about every night." Once his transformation was complete, Castle couldn't help but give credit where credit was due. He looked exactly like the man in the photo. Pulling together a quick overnight bag, Castle packed his laptop and several changes of clothes. The rest of his possessions would have to stay behind since they couldn't afford to be hampered by two large suitcases.

He left Beckett to finish getting ready and was too restless to sit, so he began pacing in front of the bed. What if this didn't work? What if they got caught trying to navigate airport security? There were so many ways this could go wrong, but they didn't have much choice. They would probably never make it out of Washington if they didn't use the false identities. When Kate emerged a few minutes later, Castle was quite taken aback by her appearance. Her long caramel locks had been pulled back and tucked away under a blonde, bobbed wig, and her hazel eyes were now an icy blue. That wasn't what grabbed his attention the most, however. She had placed a towel or pillow – he wasn't sure which – under her loose shirt and now appeared to be about six months pregnant. There was no way anyone would mistake her for Kate Beckett.

"We have a problem," she said quietly.

"What?" Castle asked, alarmed. Had she received another call? Were the FBI agents already on their way?

"The boot is a dead giveaway."

Beckett had covered the cast on her wrist by wearing a long-sleeved tunic, but even though she was wearing long, loose yoga pants, the toe of the boot was still visible. "I'm going to have to take it off."

"You won't be able to walk," Castle protested.

"I don't know what else to do, Castle." Sighing, Castle realized there wasn't anything else they could do. She was going to have to try to get by without it. Kate popped two pain pills before she removed the boot and stood, grimacing slightly. She took a few experimental steps, and even though it was obviously painful, her gait wasn't much affected.

"What now?" he asked, once Kate had thrown together her own overnight bag.

"I have $1500 stored in the box. It isn't much, but it was all I had at the time. Please tell me you have some cash."

Castle was known for carrying ostentatious amounts of money on him at all times - he had once told Beckett, "I'm a bestselling author. Why wouldn't I have $2000 in my wallet?" - and this time, he didn't disappoint. They had more than enough for plane tickets and anything else they may need within the coming days. "You ready for this?" he asked as they walked towards the door.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

Agent Daniels was shaking by the time he arrived home. After making the call to Beckett, he had flagged down a cab, and it wasn't long before he pulled up outside of the house he and Julie had only owned for a little over a year. They had been so proud the morning they signed the final papers. Now, he felt completely violated, the joy of owning this home tarnished by the knowledge that they were obviously being watched. He didn't want to scare his wife, so he stood outside for a few moments to calm his nerves.

"Where have you been? I've been trying to call you," Julie started nervously, running to her husband before he was barely in the door.

"What's wrong?" Daniels asked. Julie never tried to call him while he was working unless there was an emergency.

"Right after you left, someone from the cable company showed up. They said you had authorized the installation of a new cable box. I tried to call you, but your phone was off…"

"Did you let them in?"

"No," she said quietly. "I told them they'd have to come back tomorrow during normal business hours."

"You did good," Daniels said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Listen, you know how Chloe has been dying to go to Disney World?"

"Yes," his wife answered warily.

"I think you guys should go."

"When?"

"Tonight."

"Tonight? Jake, are you crazy? What has gotten in to you?"

"I can't explain. You just have to trust me."

She met her husband's eyes and realized that he wasn't joking around. He had a dangerous job, one that she had always feared would eventually catch up to them. By the way he was staring at her tonight – like he was trying to memorize every detail in case he never saw her again – she feared it finally had.

* * *

Opening the door to the hotel room slowly, Castle and Beckett peered around the hallway. It was clear, so they moved quickly through the hall to the elevators. Rick slid his arm around Kate to help keep her weight off her foot, and he had to admit that the pregnancy was a great part of her disguise. If her gait seemed a little more encumbered, it could easily be written off due to the extra "weight" she was carrying. They didn't speak as they moved through the hotel lobby, holding hands and trying to act as naturally as possible. They hailed one of the waiting cabs and had the driver drop them off at Dulles Airport. "Where to?" Castle asked quietly as they stood on the sidewalk, thankfully blending in with the sea of other passengers. He was afraid the airport would be deserted due to the late hour, but like New York, it seemed to be the hub that never sleeps.

"New York," Kate whispered. "We need the file." Nodding, Castle moved to the queue for American Airlines and booked them seats on the next flight, which was leaving in an hour. Castle was used to the cushy space of first class, but for this flight, he had booked them seats in coach. While he wasn't exactly looking forward to the cramped plane ride, he figured they would be less likely to draw attention in the back of the plane. After processing the IDs for Daniel Hogue and Anastasia "Ana" Korikova, the customer service associate handed them their tickets with a warm smile and told them to enjoy their flight. Step one: complete. Moving as quickly as possible through the security line, Castle noticed Kate's grip on his hand tighten. Her eyes were scanning every possible direction, and her breathing had also become more ragged. He wasn't sure if it was anxiety, pain or a combination of the two, but he squeezed her hand back in assurance. They would make it. They had to.

When their turn finally arrived, they each slipped off their shoes and placed them on the conveyor belt along with their carry-on bags. Castle moved through the metal detector without a problem, but Kate was stopped. He saw her freeze and realized for the first time what this could mean. If they did a pat down, they'd realize she wasn't really pregnant.

"Could you step over here please, ma'am?" the TSA agent asked politely.

"Of course," Beckett said, slipping into her Russian accent with an easy confidence.

"How far along are you?" the woman asked idly as she looked over the fake traveling documents.

"24 weeks," Kate answered with a smile.

The woman looked her over and then dropped her voice to a whisper, "You were selected for a random security search, but I'm going to let you pass. I just had a baby five months ago, and I know how uncomfortable it is to be pregnant and traveling. You don't need the added stress." With a smile, the woman passed Beckett her ID and passport. "Have a nice time in New York."

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "I appreciate it very much."

By the time Beckett met Castle on the other side of the checkpoint, she was shaking like a leaf. "Breathe," Castle whispered, trying to calm her down. "You're amazing, you know that?"

Thirty minutes later, they were sitting together outside of the gate for their flight back to New York. A strained silence had fallen between the pair, as they each tried to keep their anxieties at bay. Finally, after what seemed like days, the plane began boarding. Once they were seated, Kate felt herself relax a bit. As she watched the other passengers file in, search for their seats and place their luggage in the overhead compartments, she tried to create a back story for each of them, which was a stress-relieving tactic Castle had once shared. She glanced at her partner who was lost in his own thoughts and idly wondered if he was doing the same thing. If so, she wanted to hear the story he was creating for the man in seat 14B, who just narrowly missed hitting the woman in the aisle seat in the head with his bag. As they prepared for takeoff, Kate shared a relieved smile with her soon-to-be husband and was happy to see that he, too, seemed somewhat more at ease. Lulled into a false sense of security, Kate barely contained her gasp when she saw two men running down the tarmac towards the plane, badges raised. The seatbelt sign had just come on, but it quickly disappeared as the Captain's voice sounded over the loudspeaker.

"Ladies and gentleman, I apologize for the delay, but it looks like our flight has been detained. Please remain seated and stay calm while we get this issue sorted." The agents, who Kate assumed were FBI even though she couldn't tell from this distance, had reached the plane, so they were no longer within her field of vision. Within minutes, they would most likely be making their way down the aisles searching for the two fugitives. How did the FBI know they were gone already? The raid wasn't supposed to happen until morning. She tried to keep her breathing steady, but she was doing a lousy job. Even the woman in the seat next to her had noticed her agitation.

"Flying makes me nervous too," she said, sympathetically. "When is your baby due?"

"I'm due the beginning of November." The woman continued to make small talk, so Kate obliged her. As they chatted, Castle was beyond impressed with Kate's ability to have a conversation in such a believable accent. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought Kate was actually raised in Russia.

"Excuse me, everyone," the flight attendant said as she appeared in front of the blue curtain separating coach from first class. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but this flight is part of a new pilot program that, if successful, is going to be launched within the coming months. Before takeoff, these men are going to be doing a quick security search." The flight attendant stepped out of the way, and the two FBI agents appeared and began scanning the rows of passengers.

Kate was squeezing Castle's hand so hard he was certain it would break under the strain. He knew that the FBI agents would never admit that they were searching the plane for two innocent people who were being framed, but a new pilot program? Really? No one seemed to believe the story, and the passengers were all starting to get restless, which did nothing to help calm his own nerves.

The agents moved quickly through the cabin, pausing two rows down from where Kate and Castle were sitting. "Sir, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to come with us," the agent on the right said. Kate was certain they were talking to Castle until the man in the row behind them stood and willingly walked towards them. The agents each grabbed one of his arms roughly and escorted him off the plane, leaving everyone a little breathless.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the captain announced again once the door to the plane was shut tightly. "I apologize for the convenience. We are now ready for departure, so please fasten your seatbelts."

As the plane rolled down the runway, Kate couldn't believe their luck. What were the odds that the FBI was looking for someone who just happened to be on their flight? She risked a glance at Castle as the wheels lifted off the ground. He was grinning from ear to ear with relief, and she couldn't help but match his smile. By the grace of God only, they had made it.

**A/N: The next chapter will be posted this weekend. Happy Friday, everyone.**


	13. Chapter 13

Previously:

_By the grace of God only, they had made it._

Shortly after takeoff, Kate fell asleep with her head on Castle's shoulder. The combination of stress, a very long day and the two pain pills she took before they left the hotel were all too much for the detective. As she slept, Castle tried to think up a game plan. So many questions remained. Why would the FBI suddenly turn on them? And what was Daniels's role in this ordeal? He had warned them, so he couldn't be working for the enemy, right?

Kate stirred briefly, drawing Castle's attention to the woman cuddled into his side. He debated waking her up. Since her ordeal with Michaels, she had been plagued by frequent nightmares, and if she woke screaming, it would draw unwanted attention from the entire plane. She seemed peaceful, though. Castle could only hope the sedative effects of the pain medication would keep her relaxed.

As he continued to watch her sleep, his focus shifted to the small bump under her shirt. Maybe it was simply a byproduct of the current case, but he had been thinking a lot about family lately. Even though they were engaged, he had never discussed kids with Kate. He didn't even know if a family was something she wanted. Although, he saw how wonderful she was with children, and the wistful expression in her eyes when Ryan announced Jenny's pregnancy had not gone completely unnoticed. His thoughts suddenly started revolving around Kate holding their baby or Kate with the ethereal glow exclusive to expectant moms. He couldn't help also picturing a small girl with her mom's brunette curls and hazel eyes. While these thoughts weren't completely foreign to Castle - after all, raising Alexis was the most wonderful, fulfilling journey he had ever embarked on - this was the first time such thoughts were accompanied by a pronounced sense of longing. As they continued on their journey northward, Castle made a promise to himself that as soon as this was over, he'd marry Kate and talk to her about having a baby. Life was too unpredictable and too short for regrets. If kids were something she was even contemplating, he wanted to make that happen for her.

All too soon, the hour-long flight came to an end, and Castle felt dread course through his veins when he realized they would soon have to exit the safe cocoon of the airplane. The only blessing was that time was on their side. Thanks to Daniels's tip, Kate's quick thinking and the already existent IDs, they still had several hours before the raid was scheduled to take place. Right now, the Feds would think they were still soundly sleeping in their bed at the Four Seasons, blissfully unaware of the looming danger.

"Mmm, are we in New York already?" Kate asked sleepily as she started to wake up.

"Yes, Ana, we're here," Castle said gently, silently urging her to remember who they were and what they were doing.

"Good," she said, her Russian accent still as flawless as ever. "That was a short flight."

As they walked down the corridor of the airport 20 minutes later, Castle couldn't help but scan the sea of people in the airport for familiar or suspicious faces.

"Do you have the key for the bank?" Castle whispered quietly, pulling Kate to stop just inside the doors of LaGuardia Airport.

"Of course, but I can't very well waltz into the bank and get the file myself. We'll have to call Espo." Unbeknownst to Castle, Kate had a long conversation with Esposito after her initial run-in with Bracken a year ago. If something happened to her, she wanted someone to have a spare key to the bank vault where she was housing the file. She didn't want her dad involved, and she refused to put Castle and his family in any further danger. Esposito had been with her when she set up the account and rented the bank vault, and the bank manager had been requested to release the contents of the vault to Esposito should she be unable to make the withdrawal herself.

Before Castle could respond, his cell phone started ringing. In a panic, the two shared a long look before he finally grabbed the phone out of his jacket pocket. It was 3:30 in the morning. Who would be calling now?

"It's my mother," Castle whispered, perplexed. Kate grabbed his arm and shook her head before pointing discretely to a bank of pay phones in a vestibule adjacent to the rental car agency. Nodding, Castle silenced the ringing phone and made his way over to a phone booth.

"Hello?" Martha asked cautiously when she answered the call from the unrecognizable number.

"Mother, it's me," Castle whispered into the phone. "Is everything alright?"

"Richard, you got another package. This one is marked urgent."

"When did it arrive?"

"Just a few minutes ago. The night doorman brought it up. He apologized for the inconvenience but said that the man who delivered the package told him it was an emergency."

"Mother, I need you to send the package down to the night doorman and tell him that Daniel Hogue will be picking it up."

"Daniel Hogue? Who's Daniel Hogue? Richard, where are you? Why didn't you answer your cell phone?"

"Daniel Hogue is someone I trust. He can get the package to me in D.C.," Castle said, purposefully ignoring his mother's other questions. He hated lying to his mother more than anything, but in this instance, her safety had to take priority.

"Richard, are you sure that's a good idea?"

"It's the best I can do for now," Castle said truthfully. "It will be fine. Trust me. Now, get some sleep. I'll talk to you soon."

"Be careful, Richard."

"I will."

As he hung up the phone, Castle felt a pang of longing shoot straight through his chest. While dwelling on the negative was the worst possible thing he could do, he irrationally couldn't help but wonder when and if he'd ever speak to his mother again. He didn't dare think about his daughter. If he did, he'd surely fall apart. "We're going to need to swing by my building," he whispered when he finally met Kate's eyes.

"Castle…"

"There's a package waiting for us, _Ana,_" Castle said, perturbed that Kate used his real name. Sure, there was no one standing in close enough proximity to overhear what was being said, but she needed to be more careful. Obviously, her judgment was still a little cloudy thanks to the pain pills and her recent nap. "Is your cell phone off?"

"Yes."

"Good. I'll turn mine off now. I'm sorry; I know they can track us using our phones."

"They're not looking for us yet," Kate said. "It's fine." Castle nodded, somewhat unconvinced before they headed out into the darkness of the night.

* * *

Agent Daniels stood in front of the bed he shared with his wife pacing back and forth. Three hours ago, he had done the hardest thing he had ever done in his life when he helped his wife pack up their minivan and then kissed his wife and daughter goodbye. They were heading to the happiest place on Earth, where Daniels could only hope they would be safe.

With the safety of his family preserved to the best of his abilities, Daniels had to focus now on the matter at hand. The bursting file the Vice President gave him was glaring up at him from the middle of the bed. He had devoted his entire career to putting criminals behind bars and making the country a safer place. There was no way he was going to plant this evidence to protect a corrupt politician. Still, he had no idea who he could trust and who would believe him. After agonizing for several minutes, Daniels grabbed his phone from the bedside table. Even though it was the middle of the night, this couldn't wait. And there was only one member of the team who he trusted with this information.

"Rodriguez," a tired voice answered.

"It's Daniels."

"Yeah, I noticed," she said, irritably. "Do you know what time it is? What's going on?"

"I need to talk to you about something."

"It can't wait until morning?"

"No. I need to meet you now."

"Okay," she said, waking up a little more as she sensed the urgency in his voice. "There's a 24-hour coffeeshop down the block from my apartment building. Will that work?"

"Yeah. I'll see you in 20."

"I don't understand," a confused and frightened Rodriguez whispered an hour later as they sat in a far corner booth in the deserted café. "You're telling me that the Vice President threatened you and wants you to plant evidence against Beckett?"

"I know it sounds far-fetched, but it's true." He pushed his leather knapsack across the table towards Rodriguez, who looked at him questionably before finally accepting the bag and peering inside. Her gasp was audible as she flipped through the pages, which were thankfully concealed by the brown leather. She didn't know Beckett well at all, but the events in the forged documents supplied by the Vice President, while close, didn't exactly match the classified details that had been uncovered during their quiet investigation into Stack's death. Daniels was telling the truth; the Vice President wanted to frame Beckett, which could only mean one thing. He was guilty as charged.

"I believe you," she said finally, pushing the knapsack back across the table. "When is the raid scheduled?"

"First thing this morning. I imagine that we'll be getting a call to report to the office any minute."

"We need to warn them."

"I already did. If Beckett's smart, they're long gone by now."

"What the hell are we going to do?"

"I don't know."

"What about Julie and Chloe?"

"I sent them out of town." Rodriguez nodded. This was one reason the 32-year-old agent had never thought about having children of her own.

"We need to go into the office and pack away the evidence we do have before it has a chance to disappear."

"I know, but if I use my keycard to access the tech floor and the Vice President finds out, he will wonder what I was doing there in the middle of the night. He'll suspect that I'm up to something."

"It's nearly 5," Rodriguez whispered. "They don't know that I know. If anything comes up, I can just say I was heading in early to finish up a few things I didn't have time to do yesterday."

Daniels wanted to be in charge of picking up the materials himself, but he couldn't risk it. Until they were all called into work, he needed to stay away to keep suspicions at bay. As difficult as it was, he'd have to trust that Angela Rodriguez would do the right thing.

* * *

Back in New York, Castle gave the cabbie the address to his loft as the cab pulled away from the curb. Beckett's stomach was in knots. Now that they were out of Washington and seemingly safe for the time being, the adrenaline had worn off. She was exhausted, in pain, anxious and feeling a little sick. "You okay?" Castle asked as he looked at his girlfriend's pale, drawn face.

"Fine," she whispered. He knew she wasn't, but they couldn't very well have any type of discussion in the back of a cab so he let the conversation drop. They didn't speak again until the cab pulled up outside of the only building that Kate had ever really considered home. Castle gave the cabbie a few bills and directed him to stay put. After retrieving the package, they would head to a hotel until they could formulate a more solid plan.

Thirty minutes later, they were housed safely in a Manhattan hotel located about eight blocks from the loft. The manila envelope sat on the table in front of them, and they were both staring at it as if it contained a bomb. "You ready?" Castle asked as he reached for the package. Kate, who looked hauntingly defeated, nodded and allowed Castle to open the envelope. As he pulled out the contents, he noticed there was only a small note and a USB device. All that was scrawled on the small piece of lined notebook paper was the word, "Listen."

* * *

In a small, dimly lit walkup in Brooklyn, Jackson Hunt was waiting for a phone call. "Did you deliver the package?" he asked when the untraceable line rang through.

"Yes."

"Thank you. You'll have your money first thing tomorrow." The line went dead before Hunt dialed another number, this one with a D.C. area code.

"Gregory," a man whispered into the phone.

"We received the recording."

"Good," the man said quietly. "I've already placed another bug in the Vice President's Eisenhower office."

"And he doesn't suspect anything?"

"No. I will be by his side all day today. He is planning a press conference to be held directly after the raid of the hotel room."

"Alright," Hunt said, signing wearily. He hated the idea of his son's good name being sullied in the media, but it was the initial price he'd have to pay for justice. Eventually, when all of this was said and done, his reputation would be restored. "Keep me updated."

"I will, Sir."

As the line went dead, Hunt, not for the first time, had to be thankful for his job, which had brought him so many powerful connections. Having the number one most trusted member of the Vice President's security entourage in his pocket was proving quiet useful indeed.


	14. Chapter 14

"What do we do now?" The question was so quiet and so laced with uncertainty Castle wasn't sure he had heard her correctly at first. Pushing past his own shock, he forced himself to direct his focus from the computer in front of him to the woman sitting next to him on the couch. She had taken her hair down, her own contacts had replaced the blue ones, and she thankfully looked like Kate again. Although, the week had been unkind to her. She had lost at least five pounds, and the bruises on her cheek and forehead served as brutal, constant reminders of the battle they were facing.

Five minutes ago, the voice of the Vice President of the United States had faded out with Agent Daniels's dismissal, leaving the room cloaked in a thick, eerie silence. Castle wasn't sure how his father had gotten the recording - wasn't sure he even wanted to know. All he did know was that Daniels had shifted sides and now held all the evidence needed to arrest Kate and press charges. In a few hours' time, Leader, most likely accompanied by the Attorney General, would stand on a podium in front of the entire country and declare Kate a fugitive suspected of killing a federal agent, staging her own kidnapping and framing a Senator. And there was nothing they could do to stop him.

"At least we know we have the right guy." She was aiming for lightheartedness but missed by miles. Reassurance and making the best out of the worst situations were Castle's fortes, and judging by the way she was looking at him, she needed to hear something reassuring.

"My dad is still helping us, Kate," Castle said. "The file proves it. As long as he's still helping us, we're going to be fine." Maybe it was the fact that Hunt had helped Rick save Alexis, or maybe it was the fact that he had recently taken up the habit of appearing when Castle needed him most. But Castle now found himself clinging to the idea of this man - his father - who was out there watching over him. Castle reminded Kate so much of a little boy just then her heart hurt. They couldn't rely on Hunt. He hadn't given them any reason to believe he wasn't trustworthy, but he had been absent for 41 years. Track records didn't come much worse than that.

"We need to call Espo and get the original file. I know a shredded file won't mean a damn thing in court, but if we could piece together enough of the papers, we may be able to find another lead that will help."

Castle nodded and moved to the in-room phone. He had learned in Paris that his father had been using his cell phone to track him, and Leader had access to the most sophisticated surveillance equipment available. If there was a chance they were tracking him using his cell phone, they would already know that he and Kate were back in New York. The last thing he needed was to bring them right to the doorstep. From memory, he dialed the familiar number for Esposito, who picked up with a cautious hello since he didn't recognize the number.

"It's Castle," Rick whispered into the phone, as though whispering would offer him some sort of protection.

"Are you in New York?" Esposito asked, recognizing the Manhattan area code.

"Yes, we need a favor." Castle gave Esposito the name of their hotel in Tribeca and then returned next to Kate on the couch. "He'll be here within the half hour."

"I hate to involve him further in this, Castle. Part of me feels like I should just turn myself in. Then, you'd be safe. They would quit looking for you, and you and the boys would have unlimited time to figure this out."

"Do you hear yourself right now?" Castle asked appalled. He was suddenly wondering if the concussion Beckett sustained wasn't more serious than they first realized. She wasn't thinking clearly at all. If she turned herself in, there would be no time. He wouldn't put it past Leader or Bracken to send in a henchman to take care of Kate. And, it wouldn't mean freedom for him either. Neither of them would be free until those two evil men were safely behind bars. "That's not an option, Kate. You're exhausted. It's been a really stressful 24 hours. Why don't you lie down for a few minutes?"

"Castle, I don't have time to sleep."

"We've got 30 minutes before Espo will be here. In the meantime, please try to get some rest. Just 30 minutes. That's all I'm asking."

Kate regarded him quietly for a few moments before, surprisingly, conceding. She was truly exhausted, and she hoped even a brief 10 or 15 minute rest would be enough to clear the fuzziness in her head. Easing up from the couch, she hobbled over to the bed and sank under the covers, feeling Castle's eyes on her the entire time. Within moments, she was asleep.

* * *

After his brief meeting with Rodriguez, Daniels headed back to his home to dress and wait for the phone call that he knew would be coming. Since he had disposed of his iPhone the night before while still in the parking garage – who knows what kind of bug the Vice President's men planted while they had the device – he knew the call would come in on his home phone, and it would be best if he was there to answer. He had given Julie a burner phone and had placed his own burner phone on the vanity in the bathroom in case his wife called. He figured it was a long shot that she'd call before he'd have to go into work. After all, the drive to Florida would take a little over 12 hours, and they'd only been gone for about eight. Still, he knew he'd feel more at ease once his wife and daughter were settled.

As he finished straightening his tie and running a hand through his hair, his phone began to ring. "Daniels."

"It's me," Rodriguez answered hurriedly. "I got the information you requested regarding the Heinsberg file." The Heinsberg case was the case Rodriguez and Daniels had been working on before Daniels had been reassigned to watch Bracken. It had taken a backseat to the present nightmare, and he knew Rodriguez was just trying to be careful considering the line they were communicating on could have been compromised.

"Great. Can you bring it over?"

"I need to change before work. I will keep it in a safe place until we have a few minutes to go over it this evening. The tech floor was already crawling with people, so I have a feeling today is going to be busy." Before Daniels could reply, his got a beep signaling a waiting call.

"I've got another call. I'll see you later this morning." The second call was the one he had been waiting for. It was nearly 6:15 a.m., and the Attorney General was assembling a team for a classified assignment. A tip had come in overnight, and they would receive more information once they reported for duty. With a deep breath, Daniels returned the phone to its cradle and picked up the overstuffed file the Vice President had given him. Instead of carrying it out with him, he placed it in a safe that he had installed shortly after they moved in. It would be safe there until he could deal with it later. He could only imagine the look of disappointment on the Vice President's face when he was told they didn't find anything during the raid.

* * *

Kate was still sleeping when a subtle knock sounded at the door. Castle crossed quickly and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Esposito standing on the other side of the door. "Hey, thanks for coming," he whispered as he opened the door.

"Don't mention it, man. Why are we whispering?"

"Kate's sleeping." Espo nodded understandingly.

"How's she holding up?"

Castle's eyes drifted to where Beckett's feet could be visible underneath the red comforter. The rest of her sleeping body was hidden behind a partition in the wall that separated the sitting area from the bedroom. "I'm not sure," Castle said honestly. "I thought she was holding up pretty well, all things considered, but today, I'm not so sure."

"What happened?"

"Kate returned to work the day after her hospital discharge, and we've been working the case against Bracken with the help of her Attorney General team. Last night, we got a call from her partner on the case who said that there was a raid scheduled for our hotel room and that we needed to get out of town. We came back to New York, hoping that the file would offer some clues."

"How is Eric Leader involved?" Castle had gotten off the phone so quickly Esposito wasn't able to ask any questions. After a Google search had revealed Eric Leader was the man in question, he knew that they had unearthed something big. He just wasn't sure what.

"Leader is the number one in command. Bracken is number two. He was nothing more than an enforcer, really."

"How do you know that?"

Over the next thirty minutes, Castle quickly debriefed Esposito on everything they had learned in the last few days. He finished his debriefing by playing back all of the highlights of Leader's conversation with Daniels for Esposito, who looked both angry and nervous. They realized the stakes were big once they linked this back to a U.S. Senator. The thought that the Vice President was involved made the task of punishing those responsible seem impossible. "I don't know what to say, man. I can tell you from experience that you're going to need more than the bank records you currently have. You need to find a way to link the offshore account directly to Leader. The fact that the account numbers match those on Leader's late mother-in-law's account will be viewed as completely coincidental by a jury and that's if a judge even allows it into evidence."

"I know," Castle said quietly. "I was hoping that if we could get the file we would be able to piece together the names of the mobsters who were kidnapped. If the earliest kidnappings match the businesses and families who made deposits, the evidence would have to count for something."

Before Espo could respond, a small whimper sounded from Kate on the other side of the room. As Castle moved to check on her, he noticed the tight lines on her forehead and the tenseness of her muscles even though she was sleeping. He reached over and gently ran his fingers through her hair. His touch was so light she didn't wake, but it did seem to relax her a bit. Esposito was standing where Castle left him in the foyer, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot, when Castle returned to finish their conversation. "Is she having nightmares?"

"Yes. After the ordeal she went through with Michaels, I think it's only to be expected."

"You know what signs to look for right? With the PTSD?"

Beckett's struggle with PTSD after her shooting was not something they talked about often. In fact, had it not been for a brief passing mention after they started seeing each other, Castle wouldn't have even realized that she had been officially diagnosed with the disorder. She had done a great job of putting it behind her, but he knew from research that it was something that could resurface under the right conditions. He remembered the way she had been during the sniper case after her shooting – edgy, jumpy, non-communicative and panicked. If she started exhibiting those signs again, he'd know. "Yeah. I think she's going to be fine. You have to remember she sustained a head injury, too."

"I know, bro. That's why I'm concerned. What's your plan?"

"We're going to get the file and then find somewhere to lay low for a while. We can't stay in the city. This will be the first place they look once they realize we're not in D.C."

"Listen, I inherited an old cabin up near Greenwood Lake from my grandfather. It's about an hour outside of the city, which is close enough if we need to get in touch with you but far enough away that you should be fairly hidden there. I've only been up there a couple of times since he died, mostly to swim and drink with buddies. It's not fancy, but it's yours if you want to use it for the time being."

Castle was quiet for a few minutes while he considered the offer. While he knew that Beckett didn't want Esposito to be further involved, they didn't have any other options at this point. "Thanks, man. I think we'll take you up on that. I really appreciate it."

"No problem. Listen, when the bank opens at 9, I'll pick up the file and meet you here with the key and directions to the cabin. After that, you're on your own."

* * *

When Daniels arrived at the tech floor, it was bustling with activity. In addition to several Feds in SWAT gear, the entire team assigned to the Bracken case was present, with one very noticeable absence. "What's going on?" Agent Ben Harper asked as Daniels joined him near the commotion.

"I don't know," he lied.

"The Attorney General is supposed to speak in a few minutes. Whatever it is, it's big." As soon as the words were out of Harper's mouth, Attorney General Michael Johnson arrived on the tech floor accompanied by the Deputy Director of the FBI. He had a grim look on his face and looked as though he hadn't slept all night.

"Good morning," he greeted his team. "We received troubling information last night regarding our newest addition, Agent Kate Beckett. As you all know, Agent Beckett was kidnapped earlier this week at the hands of one of our own and a man who was supposedly working for Senator William Bracken. We have since received additional information regarding a personal vendetta that Kate Beckett has against the Senator. This is not the first time she has accused him of committing a crime. According to Senator Bracken, she used her badge to gain entry into an event he was holding in New York City last year and threatened him. We now believe that she may have orchestrated her own kidnapping in an attempt to frame the Senator. This morning, we will be executing a raid on the hotel room where she is staying with Richard Castle. The objective is to find any evidence of this purported claim and to bring both Ms. Beckett and Mr. Castle in for questioning. Do you have any questions?"

Daniels's blood was boiling by the time the Attorney General finished his speech. No one had any questions; they were all too shocked to speak. Dumbly, they all filed out to their cars to execute the warrant. Twenty minutes later, the entire team was standing outside of the hotel room that Castle and Beckett had been calling home. The floor had been evacuated; in light of the magnitude of the charges she was facing, Beckett was now being viewed as a potentially dangerous threat. Moving to the door, Daniels knocked and announced FBI presence. Unsurprisingly to Daniels, there was no answer. He tried two more times before SWAT moved in and busted down the door. Save for their suitcases and clothes that had been strewn around the space in their rush to leave, the space was completely empty.

As they moved into the room, a man Daniels hadn't seen before at the back of the pack whipped out his cell phone. "They're not here," he whispered into the phone. "Someone must have tipped her off." Feeling his own anxiety start to rise, Daniels watched the man closely as he hung up his phone and positioned himself in the doorway where he could watch the action from a distance. It didn't take long before the raid was completed. As the team announced that they had found nothing of interest, Daniels watched the man's face for any sign of surprise. His frown was indicative enough; he had obviously been sent by the Vice President to babysit.

"Well?" the Attorney General asked impatiently when they arrived on the tech floor without their suspects in hand.

"We didn't find anything, Sir," Daniels piped up. "The room was empty when we arrived. Their possessions were still there, but they were gone. There was no evidence to support the claims against them."

"I see," Johnson said, though not unkindly. "Put out an APB both here and in New York. We will also need to visit their residences and the residences of family members to see if they're hiding out somewhere. For now, I want to keep this out of the press. The less the public knows the better." He turned and headed back to his office while Daniels turned to the team and began issuing orders. He had warned Kate to get out of the city. If they were foolish enough to return to New York and stay with family, there was nothing more he could do for them. An hour later, the team had issued the APB and was getting ready to dispatch localized teams to both Richard Castle's loft and the home of Jim Beckett. By now the Vice President would know that the raid had been a bust and that Daniels failed to uphold his end of the bargain. A glance at the clock revealed that his wife and daughter would be arriving at Disney World sometime within the next couple of hours, if not sooner. He could only imagine Chloe's excitement as she took in the gigantic castle at the Magic Kingdom for the first time. _Next summer_, he thought to himself, _we'll go as a family._ He was so busy consoling himself with thoughts of a family vacation that he failed to notice the Attorney General arrive on the tech floor with several officers. The men marched over to his desk, causing him to jump slightly.

"Agent Jacob Daniels," one of the accompanying officers stated, "you are under arrest for obstruction of justice." The officers gruffly grabbed his arms and forced him into a standing position before reading him his Miranda Rights. The Attorney General just stared at the scene in front of him with an impassive, unreadable stare while the rest of the team watched in horror.

"Due to recent circumstances and the amount of apparent corruption happening in my own office under my own watch, the Justice Department has been asked to step down from this particular investigation," Johnson said, finally speaking for the first time. "Anyone who has been working on the Bracken case or directly with Kate Beckett will be placed on leave effective immediately for the remainder of this investigation. I ask that you step away from your desk, gather your possessions and place the files you are working on here on this table by the door. Before you will be able to leave, you will be searched to ensure that you are not removing any classified documents. I'm sorry to have to do this, but it isn't my choice. I have received my orders directly from the Vice President himself. I advise you to head home and wait for further instruction. I will be making personal phone calls updating each of you regarding your status on the task force once our investigation is complete."

As the officers gruffly directed Daniels towards the door, he stole once last glance in Rodriguez's direction. This was in her hands now, and she was the only person who held the key to getting them out of this mess.

**Thanks again for reading and reviewing. I know it's been a while since the last chapter, but I am hoping to wrap this story up in the next few weeks before season 6 premieres (only 16 more days!)**


	15. Chapter 15

In his executive office, Eric Leader was seething. How dare Daniels defy him? Not only had the man tipped off Beckett, but overnight, his wife and daughter had vanished like ghosts. He would pay, though. Leader would make sure his stay in federal prison was less than pleasant.

"I want my men on the ground in New York as soon as possible," Leader barked to his right-hand man, who had been present during the botched raid. "Check all of the flight records for flights out of Dulles to La Guardia, JFK and Newark airports. If those prove to be a bust, we'll have to flush her out. Her father lives in New York. I have a feeling she'll show her face if we take him into custody."

"Yes, sir," the man said, writing as fast as he could to keep up with the conversation.

"I should have taken care of Bracken long ago and finished the job myself." He threw himself into his chair and poured himself a glass of whiskey before leaning his head back and closing his eyes. He had official duties he was supposed to be performing now, but he couldn't because all of his focus was on Kate Beckett. He had shut down the Attorney General's team this morning, and it was only a matter of time until people started getting nosy. He needed to end this and quickly.

* * *

Jackson Hunt was pacing through his Brooklyn apartment, feeling both proud and frustrated. He had been tracking his son's movements using Rick's cell phone, but after Paris, it seemed Castle had learned a thing or two. Other than a small blip around 3:30 this morning from a cell tower in New York City, there had been radio silence. If Rick's work with the NYPD had proven anything, it was that he was resourceful. He didn't need Hunt watching his every move. Still, the adversaries he was up against this time were more dangerous than your average criminal, and this recent development would make package delivery much more difficult.

As he mentally ran through his options, his phone started ringing. Finally, his contact in Washington was checking in. Hunt had been waiting for news of the press conference, but there hadn't been any all morning. "Gregory, what's going on?" Hunt asked quickly.

"The raid was a bust. The FBI agent who was tasked with placing the evidence didn't. Leader had him taken into federal custody this morning. Right now, he has nothing more than speculation, but he's getting desperate. Be careful." The line went dead while Hunt tried to make sense of what he had just learned. On the plus side, they didn't have anything concrete on his son or Beckett, but Leader's frustration and subsequent determination would make his men that much more difficult to dodge. Pocketing his cell phone, Hunt grabbed his car keys and headed for the door. While he hated showing his face, he had probably 30 or 40 minutes before the night doorman at the loft would be off duty, and he needed to know if Martha still had the package or if Castle had picked it up, hopefully using an alias.

* * *

After Esposito left, Castle eased onto the bed next to Beckett and spent a few quiet moments just watching her sleep. He knew she would be angry that he hadn't woken her in time to speak with Esposito, but she needed the rest more. In the background, he had CNN on low volume to wait for the news, but so far, there had been nothing about the raid, which both surprised and worried him. Maybe they were still preparing, or maybe they decided to keep things out of the press. Still, the plan had been for them to do the raid early this morning and then hold a press conference, and he didn't understand why Leader would change the plans unless things weren't going his way. The last thing they needed was for Leader to decide it was time to up the ante and go after Jim or his mother.

Castle was drawn out of his somewhat morbid thoughts when Kate started to stir. She gave him a sleepy smile as she sat up and stretched. "Still waiting for Espo?"

"He left about an hour ago."

"What? Why didn't you wake me?"

"He was in and out quickly. He'll be back later this morning with the file and a key to his cabin near Greenwood Lake. He's going to let us lie low there for a while."

"Have they done the press conference yet?" she asked, motioning to the TV.

"No. There hasn't been anything about the raid yet. Kate, do you think we need to warn our parents?"

She was silent for a few minutes while she thought things over. Honestly, she hadn't thought past getting out of D.C. and moving to a safer location. She figured Martha was safe; after all, Kate was the real target, and Hunt was making deliveries to the loft so he was obviously watching over her. Her dad, though, was a sitting duck.

"I think my dad should come with us," Kate said finally. "Maybe Martha, too. It's up to you if you think she's safer at the loft."

"Can you imagine it?" Castle chuckled wryly. "You, me, your dad and my mom all under one roof."

"It'd be like a prolonged version of that nightmarish dinner we had after we started dating."

"And it's baseball season, too," Castle chuckled. "How apt."

Silence fell between the pair while they tried to think up a plan. "We're going to be okay, Kate," Castle said finally.

"How do you know that?"

"I don't," he answered honestly. "But I have faith in us. We've made it this far. What are a few more obstacles?"

She smiled before getting up and running her fingers through a few tangled strands of hair. Moving quickly to the in-room phone, she dialed her dad. When he failed to answer his cell phone, she dug his business card out of her wallet and called his office. A brief conversation with his administrative assistant explained his absence. "He's in court this morning," she said quietly, chewing on her lip. "I may have to ask Esposito to check in on him for me."

* * *

Captain Victoria Gates was sitting in her office looking over several reports when the APB came in. Earlier in the week, she had seen the news about Beckett, Senator Bracken and Agent Stack. While it had all come as a shock, she had spoken with Esposito, who assured her all was well. One Police Plaza had been breathing down her neck about a variety of things, including over time and closure rates, so she hadn't had time to focus on much else. Plus, this wasn't the first time and more than likely wouldn't be the last time that Beckett and Castle got themselves into a scrape. In their line of work, it unfortunately often came with the territory. When the all points bulletin came in, she almost ignored it. She nearly fell out of her chair when a quick passing glance revealed Beckett and Castle's faces.

"Esposito, Ryan, get in here," she yelled. The officers in the bull pen were all standing around staring at each other dumbly after viewing the bulletin. Ryan and Esposito shared a look before entering Gates office. The petite woman was looking at them angrily, fire shining in her eyes. "I want to know everything you know about Beckett, her mother's murder, Senator William Bracken and Roy Montgomery's death, do you understand me? And don't even think about playing dumb. If I find out you're hiding something from me, I will have both of your badges."

* * *

A mere eight blocks from the hotel, Hunt doing his best to track down his son, starting with the loft's doorman. "Excuse me," he called with a warm, hopefully non-threatening smile, "were you on duty last night?"

"Yes, Sir," the night doorman answered. He was grabbing his things and preparing to leave. Hunt obviously had not arrived one moment too soon.

"There was a package delivered for Richard Castle late last night. Do you know if he got it?"

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say, Sir."

"The contents of the package are extremely important. It is imperative that I know he received it."

"I delivered the package to Ms. Rodgers, Mr. Castle's mother. A few minutes after I delivered it, she called me and asked me to come back and pick it up. She said that she had spoken to her son and that an acquaintance would be picking up the package on his behalf."

"Do you have the name of this acquaintance?"

"I'm going to need to see some credentials," the man said finally, looking uneasy.

Ever prepared for almost any scenario, Hunt dug his wallet out of his pocket. He removed a CIA badge identifying him to be Robert Green. The trick worked; the man quickly apologized.

"The man who picked up the package was named Daniel Hogue. He arrived here around 4:10 this morning."

"Do you know where Mr. Hogue was going?"

"No. He had a taxi waiting, but I don't know where he was headed."

"Was Mr. Hogue alone?"

"Yes."

"There wasn't a woman with him?"

"Well, I guess there could have been someone waiting in the taxi. He had the driver pull up to the curb and wait while he came in to get the package. It was dark, so I couldn't tell if there was anyone else in the car."

"Thanks," Hunt said with a curt nod. "You've been very helpful."

Hunt returned to his car and quickly pulled out his cell phone. If Castle had been by the loft, chances are he would still be close. After all, it had been late when they arrived and Beckett was injured. He would want to make sure they were settled in one place before anyone came looking for them. After a quick search revealed the names of the four nearby hotels, Hunt started in the direction of the closest one. He needed to find his son before anyone else.

* * *

After coming clean to Gates, both Ryan and Esposito sat in silence, waiting for the judgment of their Captain. Of course, Gate's wrath was nothing compared to how Beckett would react once she realized they had spilled their guts. Gates had ensured confidentiality, though, so that was a plus. She had also promised not to open an investigation on Montgomery. Honestly, she was scared for Beckett and wanted to help. She knew that there was no way Kate would ever commit the crimes for which she was being accused.

"I'm not going to lie," she said finally. "I'm disappointed in both of you for keeping this from me. Where are Beckett and Castle now?"

"In the city," Esposito said quietly. "I saw Castle this morning."

"You did?" Ryan asked, a hint of hurt in his tone.

"You do realize that every cop in New York will be looking for them."

"Yes, Sir."

"And what is their plan?"

"I offered them lodging at a cabin I own about an hour outside of the city. They're going to lie low while they try to piece all of this together."

"Ryan, I want you to find me everything you can on Senator William Bracken and the cops involved in this scheme. I'd also like to see the file on Beckett's mother's murder."

"Yes, Sir," Ryan said.

"Esposito, get them out of the city. I also want a protective detail on Jim Beckett and Martha Rodgers. I'm not going to let these corrupt politicians win without a fight."

After the briefing with Gates was finished, Esposito headed to the Manhattan bank where the file was stored. The entire trip made him edgy. What if someone saw him? After he was certain he hadn't been followed, he parked his cruiser on the curb and entered the bank. He moved quickly and quietly towards the teller, who disappeared to get the manager for him. The entire process was taking an inordinately long period of time, and when the manager finally appeared, Esposito barely stifled his groan of relief. He handed over the key and the manager disappeared again. He was quick this time, though. A few minutes later, he returned carrying the small black duffel bag that housed the remnants of the file.

"Thank you," Esposito said, shaking the manager's hand. He exited the bank and hailed a cab, leaving his cruiser parked on the curb. It was bad enough he drove his own car to the hotel this morning. If the raid was finished, they would know Beckett and Castle were currently on the run, and the first place they'd turn would be family and friends. As the cab pulled away from the curb and headed towards the hotel, Esposito took one more cautionary glance in the rear view mirror. He was clear.

* * *

Jim Beckett was preparing for opening arguments when a man in a suit entered the back of the courtroom. He wouldn't have even noticed the man if he hadn't shown a federal badge to the cop manning the door. He had spoken with his daughter briefly earlier in the week and had been told to ignore the news. She was fine, she had said. Now, he was starting to wonder. Was Katie alright? Had something else happened? Ever since his daughter joined the police force, not a day went by that he didn't worry about men in uniform knocking on his door the way they had 14 years ago when Johanna was killed. He continued to watch the suit speak with the uniformed officer until finally the officer turned and started walking towards him. His breath caught in his throat as he tried to calm his now rapidly beating heart.

"Mr. Beckett, there's somewhere here to speak with you," the cop whispered, leaning over the small oak partition separating the seating area from the front of the courtroom. Jim nodded towards the man he was defending and excused himself. As he approached, the man in the suit extended his hand.

"Mr. Beckett, my name is Joseph Waters, FBI. May I have a word?"

"Of course," Jim said anxiously. "Is it about Katie? Is she alright?"

The man didn't speak; instead, he just kept walking through the courthouse until they reached the exit. A black SUV was parked in the fire zone and two more federal agents were leaning against the car. "Sir, we would appreciate it if you would come with us."

"Why is that necessary?"

"We have some questions we need to ask you regarding your daughter."

"Is she alright?"

"She's wanted for questioning."

"On what charges?"

"I'm afraid that we are not at liberty to discuss that with you here. If you will come with us to our field office, we can explain more." Normally, Jim would have suspected something was not right, but his concern for his daughter outweighed his good sense. Plus, he was an attorney. He knew his rights and was confident in his ability to handle himself.

"If you'll excuse me, I need to make a call. Court is supposed to start within the next 30 minutes, and I will need someone else from my firm to step in for me." Jim excused himself and quickly arranged for a substitute. He grabbed his brief case and apologized to his client before climbing into the back of the SUV. The field office the agent referred to was not terribly far from the city hall courthouse, and Jim was familiar with its location because he often passed the building on his way to lunch or the subway. It didn't take long for him to realize they were driving in the opposite direction.


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you to everyone who is still reading, reviewing and following this story. My original goal was to finish this before the hiatus ended, so I am hoping to wrap it up within the next week. (Only a week and two days left until season 6!)**

After three failed attempts at area hotels, Hunt was starting to get a little concerned. He was just pulling into the parking lot of the fourth hotel when he saw a cab pull up outside of the entrance and drop off the detective who worked with Beckett. _That can't be a coincidence_, he thought to himself. He quickly followed Esposito and watched as he entered the elevator. Unlike the Four Seasons, this was not a five-star hotel and only had two levels. Hunt quickly headed for the stairs and took them two at a time. He came out of the stairwell and looked around for the detective, who seemed to have disappeared. Javier, not realizing that the man following him was a friend not a foe, had hidden around a column in the middle of the hallway and was waiting to jump him as he approached. As Hunt cautiously moved down the hallway, Esposito jumped on his back from behind and both men fell to the floor, creating enough noise to draw Castle out of his hotel room for a quick peek.

"Hey! Hey!" Castle yelled as he joined the melee. "Espo, back off, man. I know him." Javier was out of breath and confused when he looked up at Castle. Hunt was still lying on his back, pinned between Esposito and the floor.

"Son," Hunt started, "I'd appreciate it if you'd get off me." Esposito looked between the two men once more before he got up and smoothed down his jacket. He grabbed the duffel bag, muttered an apology and headed into the hotel room where Beckett was sitting on the couch trying not laugh.

"Esposito, I'd like you to meet my father, Jackson Hunt. Dad, to what do we owe the pleasure? Come bearing more bad news I take it."

Hunt briefly updated them on the status of the investigation. "We need to get Daniels out of that prison," Beckett said quickly. "He's got a family, and..."

"First of all, we need to move you two to a more secure location. After you're settled, I believe it would be best if Martha and your father join you for the time being. We can focus on what's going on in Washington after I know you will be safe. I have eyes and ears in Leader's entourage, and he's getting desperate, which is when men tend to become the most dangerous. Detective Esposito, if you need to reach us for any reason, call this number. It will direct you to an untraceable burner phone that we will use at the cabin."

Esposito accepted the small scrap of paper and handed off the duffel bag and keys to the cabin before giving Kate a hug and shaking hands with the two men. "Gates is in on it now," he finally added as an afterthought.

"What?" Kate exclaimed, horrified. "What does she know?"

"She knows everything. We had to tell her, Kate, but don't worry. She's on your side. We all are."

Kate stared at her feet for a few moments before finally nodding. No matter what Montgomery had done or what role he had played, she still cared deeply for her former mentor. Everyone makes mistakes when they first graduate from the academy. He had atoned for his sins and had sacrificed his life for her. The thought that someone else knew made her a little queasy, but it couldn't be helped. Victoria Gates was a powerful woman and definitely not someone you wanted to make an enemy.

"We'll figure this out," Esposito continued as he turned to exit the hotel room.

"Esposito," Kate called as he turned to start down the hallway. "Thank you. Check on my dad for me, okay?" He nodded before turning and striding down the hallway.

"We don't have much time," Hunt said as soon as Javier exited the room. "I've got a car parked out front. I'm going to check and make sure that we don't have company. You two get changed and packed and meet me outside."

As quickly as possible, Castle and Beckett transformed into their alter egos. Ten minutes later, after checking out, they met Hunt and headed out of the city.

* * *

Jim Beckett was trying to remain calm as the black Escalade zoomed along the highway. The agents seemed wholly unconcerned as the New York City skyline started to fade in the distance behind them. "Don't worry," the driver finally said. "We're not going to hurt you. We just need to speak with your daughter and figured this would be the most efficient means of getting her attention."

The agent's explanation did nothing to calm Jim's frayed nerves. He cared more about his daughter's safety than his own, and he knew Kate. As soon as she found out he was in trouble, she'd come running to the rescue even if it meant sacrificing herself in the process.

"Why is it so important you talk to Katie?"

"She is in quite a bit of trouble, Mr. Beckett. It seems she had us all fooled. Her entire desire to become a federal agent stemmed around an unfounded, personal vendetta she has against a U.S. Senator. She is currently suspected of staging her own kidnapping, framing a U.S. Senator and killing a federal agent."

Kate hadn't shared much, if any, of her knowledge regarding her mother's killer with her father. He knew that her shooting was somehow tied to the conspiracy, but he was hopeful she had put that all behind her. "Where are we going?" Jim finally asked, refusing to take the kidnapper's bait. He was trying to play on his emotions, and it wasn't going to work.

"Isn't it obvious, Mr. Beckett?" It wasn't obvious at all. All Jim knew was that they were on the highway traveling south at a decent clip. "We're going to Washington."

* * *

An hour later, Hunt pulled up outside of the cabin Esposito had mentioned. Before he allowed Castle and Beckett out of the car, he did a quick search of the perimeter. They were clear. The cabin was small and obviously hadn't been occupied in quite a while, but it would do for now. Castle couldn't wait until this mess was over and he could return to the comfort of his own bed.

The threesome crowded around a wooden table in the small kitchenette, and Kate removed the bag of shredded papers that used to hold the NYPD file. As they laid the pieces of paper out like puzzle pieces, Hunt couldn't help his chuckle. "This is the famed file you've been using to keep yourself safe, huh? You must have a great poker face. Son, I don't know where you found this one, but she's a keeper." He gave Kate an affectionate smile, and she felt her cheeks heat up. The ability to charm was obviously hereditary. Hunt dug around the cabinet until he located an old bottle of whiskey. After pouring three small shots into paper cups, they all seated around the table and started staring at the mess in front of them. They were all quite focused when the burner phone began to ring. Kate was so easily startled by the noise that she knocked over her own cup, drenching the papers in front of her in the process.

"Hello?" Hunt answered cautiously, as he shot a concerned look in Beckett's direction.

"Mr. Hunt, I need to speak with Castle," Esposito whispered quietly into the phone.

Hunt handed the phone to Castle who moved into another room. "Are you alone?" Esposito asked.

"Yes, why?"

"We have a problem. I swung by the courthouse to check on Jim Beckett after I left the hotel. Apparently, he was in court this morning, and right before proceedings began, a federal agent arrived and said he needed to speak with him regarding Kate. Jim walked outside with the man and hasn't been seen since. Witnesses saw him get into a black SUV with two other men. Apparently, he wasn't coerced or forced; he went willingly. Gates contacted the local FBI branch, and they had no idea that Jim was going to be brought in for questioning. They're working with us to track him down, but we don't know anything more at this time."

"Esposito, please tell me this is some kind of sick joke."

"Sorry, man. Listen, it might be better for you to not say anything to Beckett just yet. I know she's having a rough time, and..."

"I can't keep this from her," Castle said interrupting Espo before he had a chance to complete his thought. Esposito was right. This news would most likely be what pushed her over the edge, but he couldn't lie to her. If it was his mom and Kate knew she was missing but kept it from him, he'd be furious.

"It's your decision. Ryan and Gates are in on the situation, too. We have notified Martha and placed her under a protective detail. She told us Alexis is still in Costa Rica."

"Yes, she is." That was the one relatively bright spot in this whole mess. His daughter was safe from Leader's clutches in the jungle of Costa Rica and would be for the next several weeks.

"Alright, I've got to go, but I'll be in touch. Stay safe." The line went dead, and Castle could hear the voices of Hunt and Beckett carrying in from the other room. He felt absolutely nauseous as he re-entered the room to tell Beckett what Esposito had found.

"Everything okay?" Beckett asked. Castle was using his best poker face, but it obviously wasn't enough. He could sense Beckett's growing anxiety.

"That was Esposito." Rick took a breath and steeled himself to repeat the words that were currently stuck in the back of his throat. Beckett knew him well enough to know that something was terribly wrong and finally beat him to the punch.

"Oh, God, something happened to my dad," she said quietly, her eyes filling with tears as she averted her gaze to the cast in her lap.

"Kate, I need you to stay calm," Castle said gently as he knelt down next to her and squeezed her uninjured arm gently. "According to the guard at the courthouse, your father was in court this morning when a federal agent asked to speak with him. Jim walked outside with him and hasn't been seen since. Witnesses say they saw him getting into an SUV with two other agents, so he wasn't coerced or forced, which is a good sign."

Kate's eyes filled with tears and her breathing started to quicken until she was nearly hyperventilating. Castle tried to talk her through it, but it was futile. She was in the beginning throes of a major panic attack, the likes of which he hadn't actually seen only heard about one night when Kate decided to briefly open up to him about her PTSD. He wasn't quite sure what to do, so he threw a panicked look at Hunt, who went into the kitchen and retrieved the bottle of whiskey and a glass of water. He poured another shot into the small paper cup Kate was using and slid it towards Castle. "It will help take the edge off," he encouraged.

Castle tried to hand the cup to Beckett, but she shook it off. "Makes worse," she mumbled, remembering vaguely the night she downed an entire bottle and sliced her arm open during a particularly vivid flashback.

"Okay, you're okay," he said gently, whispering the same mantra over and over. He tried to put his arms around her, but she fought him, the idea of being wrapped in an embrace akin to being put in a straightjacket just now.

"Give her some space, son," Hunt said as he watched the two. After what seemed like hours, Kate's breathing began to calm. She was still shaking like a leaf when Castle brought her a tissue.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to the two men.

"Don't apologize," they both assured.

"So, the team doesn't know where they're taking him?" she asked, now that she was able to think a little more clearly.

"Not yet." She nodded and nervously ran her fingers through her hair. She was acutely aware of both men watching her and could still feel the burning, tight pain in her chest that accompanied the panic attacks. Truthfully, she didn't feel any calmer, but she at least had regained control of her emotions. Hunt had turned his attention back to the table full of papers, but Castle was still watching her. After making so much progress within the last two years, he could only imagine what this was going to do to her in terms of her anxiety.

"They said that they placed my mom under protective detail," Castle said quietly after a few seconds. "Do you think she will be safer in the city or here with us?"

"Depending on this situation with Jim, we may need to move. I think it would be best for your mom to stay put for now."

Castle nodded and tried to refocus his attention on the shredded papers in front of him. It was futile, and judging by the looks he was discretely shooting Beckett every few minutes, she was also having difficulty focusing on the task at hand.

* * *

Since his arrest earlier that morning, Agent Jacob Daniels had been sitting in a small, solitary prison cell. They were obviously trying to break him; there wasn't even a chair, a window or artificial lighting in the room he had been forced into, so for the last several hours, he had been sitting on the floor, leaning back against the metal wall in the dark. His thoughts revolved around his wife and daughter, who were hopefully still well hidden. He wasn't sure if he'd ever get out of this mess, but he had to hope that eventually the evidence would speak for itself. As he walked the thin line between wakefulness and sleep, he heard the sound of metal scraping against the floor and approaching footsteps. Someone was coming.

A bright light suddenly illuminated his holding cell, and he nearly cried out in pain as his sensitive eyes tried to adjust. When the door in front of him opened, he was surprised to see the Vice President's tall, shadowy figure filling the doorframe.

"I underestimated you, Agent Daniels," the man said with a sneer. "I don't know whether I should be irritated or impressed. I handpicked you because of your clean record and your insistence on always obeying orders. Imagine my surprise when I found out this morning that you disobeyed me. It's my own fault, really. My cockiness got the better of me. I figured there was no way you would defy me, and then, you go and pull a stunt like this. That was very unwise."

"Go to hell," Daniels spat, refusing to look up at the man.

"We've been through your home with a fine-tooth comb, but we were unable to find the file I gave you." Daniels let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. Apparently, the wall safe in their living room was hidden better than he thought. "I need to know where you hid my evidence."

"And I need a million dollars," Daniels jeered.

"We can do this one of two ways, Agent Daniels. If you tell me what I want to know, I will call off my search for your wife and daughter. We have already traced Julie's car to a rest stop just outside of the state border, and it's only a matter of time until we finish running through your phone records and find out where they are going. I will also make sure that you are moved to a nicer cell with food and a bed. If you refuse, you get to remain in solitary confinement without food or water, and we will reconvene in a couple of days. In the meantime, Chloe and Julie will take the brunt of my anger. Your decision."

"I've grown to like my little cell here," Daniels said, meeting the Vice President's eyes for the first time. "You're not going to find my wife or my child. In a few days, I will be out of here, and my first order of business will be locking you in this room and throwing away the key."

"Very well. I think we're done here," he said to the guard, who closed the door and shut off the light, leaving Daniels cloaked in darkness. Leader met his security entourage just outside of the prison, climbed into the back of his car and headed back towards his office without a second thought. He hadn't figured Daniels would change his tune in such a short period of time, but it was worth a shot. He only hoped a couple of days would be enough to break him. So far, Daniels was proving to be tougher than he ever would have suspected.

After the trip to the prison, Gregory was itching to call Hunt with an update. As soon as they were back on White House grounds, he excused himself. After finding a quiet, secluded patch of hallway, he dialed Hunt's number.

"I can't talk long," he whispered. "Two things: one, Daniels is in solitary confinement, and he isn't cooperating. Two, Leaders sent three of his men disguised as federal agents to apprehend Jim Beckett this morning. Their mission was successful. They're currently driving him back to Washington as we speak." Before Hunt could respond, the line went dead. In the kitchen, Beckett and Castle were still sitting at the table, but instead of working, Castle was gently rubbing Beckett's back and talking to her softly. The good news was they wouldn't harm Jim if they're intention was to draw Kate out into the daylight. The bad news was that it looked like they were going to have to head back to Washington.

"I just spoke with my contact in D.C. Daniels isn't cooperating, so they are no farther along in their quest to frame you than they were this morning."

"And my dad?"

"Your dad was apprehended by a group of Leader's men this morning. The group is currently in route to Washington, and Leader is hoping that by holding your father hostage you will return to Washington and surrender yourself."

"I'll return to Washington," Kate said quietly after a few minutes, her voice filled with a deadly malice. "But not to surrender. My only objective is to make Leader and Bracken pay."


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: I sincerely apologize for the delay in updates. I realize it has been nearly a month since my last chapter, but I have recently taken on a new full-time writing job, which has kept me very busy. Thank you to those who have continued to review. It is nice to know there is still interest in the story. Please know that even if it takes me a while, I have every intention of finishing this story, and I promise not to leave you all hanging indefinitely. Now, on the with the show. By the way, what does everyone think of the new season? I did not expect (spoiler) at the end of the last episode, and I'm still not quite sure how I feel about it all just yet. Though, I am glad she will be back in NY now.**

Previously: _"I'll return to Washington," Kate said quietly after a few minutes, her voice filled with a deadly malice. "But not to surrender. My only objective is to make Leader and Bracken pay."_

After her angry exclamation, silence permeated the small cabin. Castle had to repress a smile when he saw his dad's eyes widen a little at the menace in Beckett's tone. He knew from experience that she could be a handful, but that spark was one of the things he loved the most about her. The sooner Jackson Hunt realized who he was working with the better. Packed with nervous energy, Kate began pacing, the pain in her foot only adding to her fervor. Both men sat back and gave her some space, although Castle had to bite his tongue several times. He feared she would be needing surgery on her foot when all of this was said and done considering the continued damage he was sure she was inflicting. "We need a plan," she said quietly. "These guys are methodical and calculated, and they have resources."

Hunt cautioned a glance at Castle but didn't say anything. Kate was rehashing what they had both already known days ago, but running through her little monologue seemed to be calming her nerves. Finally, she ran out of steam and sank into the couch, her furrowed brow indicating that she was indeed deep in thought. "I can lure them out," she said finally. "I'm the one they want. While they're dealing with me, you can go inside and rescue my dad."

"And then what? What happens to you?" Rick asked, trying to keep his fear and frustration at bay. As soon as they arrived in New York, she had mentioned going back to Washington and turning herself in before things had an opportunity to further escalate. The fact that she brought it up again, even if she was using different verbiage now, scared him. Did she really think they had run out of options?

"I can take care of myself," Kate said fiercely. "Don't worry about me. We've been in rough situations before, Rick. I can handle myself. You know that."

"I know how much this means to you," Hunt said quietly as Kate's gaze settled upon an invisible spot in the distance. "I know you want to just charge in there, and kick some ass. I get it. But we need to do this right. At different points, I've worked with both members of the FBI and the CIA, and I don't believe your dad is in any immediate danger right now. You think you are invincible, and just from meeting you, I can tell you are more invincible than most. But you're injured. That's going to affect how we do this."

Even though she didn't want to admit it, Kate knew Hunt was right. She would be a liability in the field because she couldn't move quickly with her broken foot, which was currently screaming in protest after the abuse of the last 24 hours. Still, she was nothing if not stubborn, and secretly, she would do anything to ensure that both her dad and Castle walked away from this unscathed.

"Alright," she said finally after another few minutes of silence. "Let's hear your plan."

Two hours later, Castle and Hunt found themselves loading their small amount of luggage back into the SUV. As when they rescued Alexis, Hunt's plan to rescue Jim was well planned. It was also dangerous, and Castle was tired of danger. He would have stayed hidden away with Kate in the small cabin for the rest of his life if it meant keeping everyone he loved safe.

Hunt gave his son a small smile as he headed to the driver's seat, while Kate and Rick – technically, Ana and Daniel – settled into the backseat. Once they were situated, Kate reached across the console and took Rick's hand in her own. "Are you okay?" she whispered. She could tell that he didn't care for his father's plan, and she knew that he was nervous. Part of her also worried that it was all finally becoming too much for him. Despite his near constant assurance that he loved her and would travel to the moon and back as long as it meant they would be together, she had a constant, sinking feeling that he would finally wake up and realize how much simpler his life would be without her.

"Yeah," he said, painting on a small but seemingly genuine smile. "We're going to be fine, you know," he said, squeezing her hand a little. She nodded and turned to look out the window. It seemed as though Castle was trying to reassure himself just as much, if not more, than he was trying to reassure Kate. Before they left, Kate had allowed herself one more pain pill to ease the ache in her foot. They drive would take a little over three hours, and considering her near breakdown earlier in the day, both men were hoping she'd sleep for a little while.

* * *

Back at the 12th, life as everyone knew it had seemingly come to a halt as everyone dropped what they were doing to assist one of their own. They were in the middle of an active investigation, but for the time being, it was going to have to take a backseat to the current crisis. The rudimentary murder board was almost completely vacant, as Ryan, Esposito and Captain Gates stood around the table in the conference room trying their best to squeeze as much new information as possible out of several bogus and/or redacted NYPD files.

"Why does the name Rantix Solutions keep popping up?" Gates asked over the rim of her glasses.

"It was a company we were looking into last fall," Ryan admitted. "Before we were able to delve too far into its history, Maddox was killed in that explosion. Beckett was doing her best to move on, so we thought the best thing would be to drop it for a while."

"We need to know what it is and who owns it," Gates said as she began ruffling through papers.

"Yes, Sir," Ryan said as he headed towards his desk where he had some files locked away in his bottom drawer. As soon as he opened the door to the conference room, everyone turned to stare at the detective. He managed a smile before quickly grabbing the folders and returning to the sanctity of the conference room.

"Is the witness who saw Jim get into that SUV finished with her statement?"

"She just finished up with the sketch artist," Esposito said, holding up a sketch of a middle-aged man. "This is the man Jim was talking to before he got into the car. He is also the driver."

Gates nodded, seemingly appeased for the time being, as Ryan and Javier shared a look. Ever since they had come clean to Gates, she had been riding them hard, peppering them with questions at every opportunity. They knew she was as eager as they were to help clear Beckett's name, but they also knew that she didn't like being left in the dark and was most likely feeling a little foolish, which would mean extra work for them.

"Here's the paperwork we found last year about Rantix Solutions," Ryan said, passing the copies to Gates.

"There's not much here."

"No, there's not," he agreed. "But look at page 2's list of shareholders. See any familiar names?"

"Senator William Bracken."

"Not only that, but Hal Lockwood? He was one of Bracken's hired goons. He…"

"Killed Roy Montgomery," Gates said, finishing his statement.

"What was the name of the guy who kidnapped Beckett?" Esposito asked as he continued to shuffle through the papers.

"Michaels."

"Turns out, he was on the payroll, too. Look, he held a managerial position: Head of Recruitment."

"We need to see if we can find pictures of the men listed as employees. Maybe one of them will match the identity of the mystery man in our picture here," Gates said, referencing the sketch. An uneasy silence filled the room as Ryan and Esposito started to research the identities on the piece of paper in from of them. It had been nearly seven hours since Jim had been last seen. The longer they continued to hit dead ends, the longer…

"I've got a match," Esposito suddenly yelled triumphantly. "Bill Sanders, listed here as an IT specialist, matches the guy in the sketch." Gates and Ryan hurried over to take a peek at the photograph on the screen; the resemblance was striking. "I know Bill Sanders is obviously some kind of alias, but at least it's something."

"Do you have a way of reaching Beckett?"

"Yeah, I'll let her know," Esposito said as he quickly pulled out his cell phone.

* * *

Kate, Rick and Hunt had been on the road for nearly 45 minutes when the phone rang. Kate had dozed off, her head positioned awkwardly on Rick's shoulder. He was exhausted himself, but he was way too wired to sleep. Instead, he focused his gaze on the passing scenery, which consisted of little more than cars in gridlock.

"Yes?" Hunt questioned after fishing the phone out of his pocket. "Just a minute. It's that Detective for you again," Hunt said passing the phone to Castle in the back seat.

"Yo, man, we found the identity of the man who took Jim."

"What?" Castle asked, feeling marginally hopeful for the first time in nearly 12 hours.

"Yeah, listen, Gates, Ryan and I have been doing a little digging. Last year, when Maddox resurfaced, Ryan and I stumbled across a company called Rantix Solutions. At one time or another, Coonan, Lockwood and Maddox were all on the payroll. It seemed suspect, so today, we did some further digging into the company's origins. Apparently, Rantix Solutions specializes in military intelligence. Bracken is a 10% shareholder in the company. We were able to access the staffing records. Michaels has been on the payroll for nearly two years."

"And the man who took Jim?" Castle prodded. At the mention of her dad's name, Kate sleepily opened her eyes.

"We had the witness at the courthouse sit down with a sketch artist," Esposito explained. "The sketch matches a man named Bill Sanders who is a fairly recent hire at Rantix."

"Bill Sanders?"

"Yeah, probably an alias, but considering we were able to track Maddox, it might be helpful. I just wanted to give you a heads up. You find Bill Sanders, you'll likely find Jim."

Castle liked the idea of tracking Bill Sanders to his location much more than their original plan. The original plan was one that suited both Hunt and Kate's tastes, and while it did keep Kate out of the field per say, it did involve using her to draw them out and leaving her alone in the hotel room basically defenseless.

"Thanks, Esposito," Castle said. "We'll be in touch." He ended the call and handed the phone back across the seat to his father. As he did so, he was acutely aware of the fact that Kate was staring at him so intently it was burning a hole in the side of his face.

"Well?" Hunt said, finally. "Don't leave us in suspense."

"Esposito found the name of the guy who abducted your dad. His name is Bill Sanders, and he is employed by a company named Rantix Solutions."

"Rantix Solutions?" Kate questioned.

"Apparently, it's a cover business for Bracken's hired assassins. He is a 10% shareholder in the company, and the employee roster over the years has featured the likes of Coonan, Lockwood and Maddox."

"Change of plans, then. I guess we're going hunting for a Mr. Bill Sanders," Hunt called from the front seat.

"Have you ever heard of Rantix Solutions, Mr. Hunt?" Kate asked quietly as the three lapsed into silence.

"No, I haven't," Hunt answered honestly. "I deal mostly in foreign espionage. I have contacts in Washington, of course, but they're mostly CIA, not FBI. When you were shot, I started looking into Bracken, but I was mostly interested in his movements, rather than his past or background. I knew that he would make another move, and when he did, I wanted to make sure you two would be safe. But then I got called away on a foreign job, which is why I was in Paris when Alexis was kidnapped." It was the most Hunt had ever said about his past or his current occupation. The explanation almost sounded like an apology. For all of his intel, there were still a few loose ends that he had yet to discover.

"This changes the plan," Castle said. "Esposito said that if we find Sanders, we'll find your dad."

"Castle, our plan is fool proof," Kate said quietly. "We don't have time to waste."

Hunt glanced in the rearview mirror long enough to read the anxiety on his son's face. "My contact in the Vice President's office may be able to shed some light," he said quickly. "Now that we have a name, it might be worth arranging a meeting."

Sensing she was outnumbered and suitably numb and exhausted from pain killers, Kate nodded her acquiescence and gently laid her head back down on Castle's shoulder. At that moment, she couldn't decide what was worse: the throbbing in her foot or the fuzziness caused by the pills.

The next thing Kate knew the car was slowing to a stop. She had been out for a little over two hours, and as they approached the D.C. Metro area, the traffic was thickening. A rock station was playing quietly in the background while Castle played a game on his laptop, which he had dug out of his bag. Hunt's head was nodding slowly in time with the music, and she couldn't believe how calm they both seemed, all things considered.

"What time is it?" she asked, her throat raspy and mouth dry.

"Nearly 4," Hunt said, with distaste. "Rush hour starts early around here." Hunt successfully navigated through the sea of cars until they reached the exit that would take them to Pennsylvania Avenue. After another 20 minutes of traffic gridlock, they pulled up outside of a three-star hotel located three blocks from the Capitol. "I'll drop you two here. Go in and get a room for the night. When you come to the get the luggage, I'll sneak in the side door."

Castle got out and helped Kate to her feet. Their disguises still appropriately intact, they entered the small hotel. By Castle's standards, the interior was shabby and quite dated. It was clean, though, which was all that really mattered. They each made small talk with the woman at the desk before Castle paid in cash and accepted their room key. They were thankfully situated on the first floor near the side door entrance. As soon as they located their room, Kate went inside while Castle opened the side door for Hunt.

"I have a meeting in 30 minutes with my contact in the Vice President's entourage," Hunt said excitedly. "Hopefully, it will get us a step closer to Sanders's whereabouts."

* * *

Across town, Angela Rodriguez was sitting in her small one-bedroom apartment staring aimlessly at the stack of folders in front of her. Since being escorted off the premises this morning along with the rest of the Attorney General's team, she had poured and poured over the evidence files she had secured for Agent Daniels. The verdict was clear; Bracken was guilty as hell. Still, if she had learned anything today, it was that he was a very powerful man with associates in even higher places. As Daniels's arrest kept replaying through her mind, she wished she could walk away from this case and pretend she had never heard the name Kate Beckett. But she couldn't; she had given Daniels's her word.

Throughout the day, she kept trying to figure out her next move, and each time, she drew a blank. She had no team, no partner. She was truly a lone wolf. As long as Bracken was idolized in the press and protected by the powers that be, she had very little prayer of letting the evidence speak for itself. No, she would need to appeal to the power of the public. It was a dangerous move, but at this point, she felt like it was only alternative.

Sighing, she reached for her cell phone and dialed information. "Yes, hello," she said shakily into the phone. "I'm looking for the number for the Washington Post."


	18. Chapter 18

Forty-five minutes later, after a whirlwind meeting with both the senior news producer of the local WJLA news affiliate and the editor of the Washington Post, Rodriguez was feeling a mixture of apprehension and satisfaction. In the back of the cab taking her back to her apartment, she could only hope she had done the right thing. She imagined that local programming was being pre-empted right now on the ABC affiliate station, and it wouldn't be long before CNN and other national new sources picked up the story. Bracken could also count on a scathing front-page piece in the morning Post. He may not have to answer to the law, but this would ensure that his political career and Presidential aspirations would be over.

* * *

After settling into their hotel room, Hunt left for his meeting, which left Kate and Castle with some much-needed alone time. The ice machine was located in the room right next door to theirs, so Castle got Kate some ice for her foot and grabbed them each a soft drink out of the vending machine. He wrapped the ice in a towel and gently removed the sock from Kate's rapidly swelling foot. Around her smallest toe, where the break was the worst, her skin was turning various angry shades of purple and red. He knew that it must hurt like hell and her wince before he even applied the ice confirmed as much.

"I'll be gentle," he assured. After propping her foot up on the pillow with ice, he removed her other sock and began to gently massage her other foot. "Do you want to talk?" he asked finally.

"Not about this," she said. "Do you have any ideas for the next Nikki Heat book?"

"Actually, I do," he said cheekily. "Nikki and Rook are going on the lam in pursuit of a corrupt politician. I envision it to be a tense political thriller, probably my best work to date. What? It practically writes itself," he said when she rolled her eyes. "And you know how I'm going to end it?"

"How?"

"When it's all said and done and the bad guys are behind bars, Nikki and Rook are going to sail off into the sunset for a nice, long vacation in London, Bora Bora or Paris…well, maybe not Paris…but you get the point. Wherever they want to go, they'll go and celebrate, just the two of them."

Kate didn't miss the reassurance and conviction hidden in his words. "I love you," she said, her words punctuated by a small moan as Castle shifted his hands and began massaging the back of her calf.

"I love you, too. You know, we have some time until my dad comes back…" He knew it was most likely a silly suggestion, considering everything that was going on right now, but he wanted to hold her, wanted to be with her, wanted the solid, physical assurance that she was safe. And even though he refused to let himself dwell on the negative, he didn't know when the opportunity to be alone with Kate like this would present itself again. He expected a rebuttal, but Kate surprised him by meeting him halfway in a searing kiss. He was just about to pick her up and move them to the bed when the hotel room door flew open, revealing a very angry Jackson Hunt.

"If we're going to be a team," the older man started, "then we all need to follow the same plan. Do you understand me?" His words were aimed at both of them, but he kept his gaze mostly fixed on Kate, who looked stunned and a little hurt.

"Dad, what's going on?"

"Why would you do that?" Hunt persisted, ignoring his son. "Do you know that you have probably ruined your dad's chances of walking away from this unscathed?"

"Listen," Kate said, matching Hunt's angry tone. "I didn't do anything. I've been here with your son the entire time, and he can vouch for the fact that I haven't talked to anyone or done anything other than lay on this couch."

Taking a breath, Hunt's gaze shifted back and forth between the confused couple before he finally realized they were telling the truth. A much bigger problem existed, then.

"Dad," Castle tried again, his tone calm and collected, "what is going on?"

Hunt didn't respond. Instead, he grabbed the television remote off of the bedside table and turned the channel to one of the local news stations. Before Kate could even register the words the anchor was saying, she recognized Bracken's picture and the caption "Senator William Bracken accused of ordering hit on New York woman and her colleagues."

"The news keeps getting worse for Senator William Bracken (D-NY) who was arrested earlier this week on federal charges, including one count of kidnapping, one count of attempted murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder," the anchor stated. "According to an FBI agent who wished to remain anonymous, the recent federal charges are related to a much larger conspiracy involving events that took place between 1982 and 1999 in New York City. The events in question resulted in the kidnapping of numerous men with mob ties, the death of a federal agent, the 1999 murder of a young New York City lawyer, the 2011 killing of New York Police Department Captain Roy Montgomery and the attempted 2011 assassination of FBI Agent Kate Beckett, who at the time was employed by the New York Police Department as a Homicide Detective."

The anchor continued to speak, but Kate's hearing cut out as the room started to spin. Who leaked their story to the press? Was this a ploy by Senator Bracken's camp or the Vice President? If so, what did they have to gain? No, a federal agent had to have come forward. But who? Daniels was in jail. It had to have been someone who was working with them on the case and who had access to the evidence.

"Rodriguez," Kate and Castle both said at once.

"Who's Rodriguez?" Hunt asked warily.

"She's one of the agents who was working with us on the investigation before the Feds basically turned on us. Other than Agent Daniels, who is currently in jail, she was the only other member of the team who was really invested."

"Where do we find her?"

"I don't know," Kate said truthfully. "The Attorney General's office?"

"No," Hunt said. "According to Gregory, the entire team was sent home this morning without pay until further notice."

"She must have taken the files with her," Castle reasoned.

"By why go to the press?"

"Maybe she felt like there were no other options."

"This complicates things," Hunt said quietly. "For one, you're going to be on everyone's radar now, Kate, and Bracken and Leader are going to be angry. They're going to want to retaliate. Your dad's in danger."

"What did you find out about Bill Sanders?" Castle said, trying hard not to dwell on the possible negative repercussions.

"Gregory has never heard of Bill Sanders," Hunt said as watched both of their faces fall. "He did, however, have an address."

* * *

Since getting into the SUV with the "federal agents" earlier this morning, Jim Beckett had tried to remain as calm as possible. Even though he was being held against his will, he supposed it could have been worse. So far, they had treated him well. He had been blindfolded once they entered the city, so he had no idea where they were, but if he had to guess, he would have guessed an old, abandoned apartment building on the outskirts of town. He hadn't heard any traffic noises since they arrived, so he knew that the area wasn't very highly populated. And they had to climb up several flights of stairs, so he knew they weren't on the ground level either. The apartment they were in was sparsely furnished. Two of the three agents were watching a movie on a laptop using a remote wireless connection. The third man, the one who had come into the courthouse to speak with him, was asleep on a tattered old couch that had definitely seen better days. Jim was sitting at a card table, with a two-hour-old turkey and swiss sandwich staring up at him. The fact that they were willing to feed him and had even invited him to watch television with them made him feel a little more at ease. They wanted him alive and healthy, at least for the time being.

As he sat in the chair and counted the ceiling tiles, he kept thinking about his wife. Not a day went by that he didn't miss her terribly. In times like these, he wished he could talk to her and hear her reassuring voice. He knew Johanna was probably rolling over in her grave right now. She had always wanted Katie to grow up and live a healthy, happy life. It would have killed her to know that their daughter had dedicated her life to avenging her mom's death, but really, he figured Jo wouldn't have been entirely surprised. Katie inherited her thirst for justice from her mother.

Jim was startled out of his depressing thoughts when a cell phone on the coffee table started to ring and vibrate loudly, piercing the otherwise silent atmosphere. The man in charge, who the others called Bill, jumped up sleepily and answered the phone before heading down the hall and closing the door to one of the other rooms. His voice was too muffled for Jim to make out what he was saying, but he sensed Bill was growing angry, which wasn't a good sign.

A few minutes later, Bill emerged from the bedroom. "Go to right now," he barked at the other two men who jumped and quickly started typing. The three men were sitting in front of the screen, so Jim couldn't see what they were looking at, but their collective gasp was telling enough. He felt his heart rate kick up a notch as he thought about his daughter. Was she okay? Had she been taken into federal custody?

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the three men turned to gawk at Jim. "Your daughter just made a very stupid decision," Bill said as he reached for his gun and started to approach him.

* * *

Since the news reports started coming in about 30 minutes ago, Eric Leader had been pacing through his executive office. The White House's attorneys were currently in the midst of drawing up a gag order, but it would be no use. The damage was done. He hadn't talked to Bracken since the news broke, but word was that he was currently holed up in his D.C. residence with his wife, hiding from the press that had scattered themselves across the lawn waiting for him to emerge. A press conference was also in the works, but Leader had the chilling feeling that it wasn't going to matter. Even with the best fixers in Washington working on this case, the public backlash would be severe. What's worse was that his name had been dropped during the conversation, as well. The Feds had found out about his late mother-in-law's bank account somehow, and his wife had been calling nonstop for the past 30 minutes. He'd have to face her eventually, but right now, he was more willing to take his chances with the journalists that had descended upon the Capitol like a horde of angry bees.

"Vice President Leader, the President is requesting a meeting," his assistant said, poking her head through the door.

"Tell him I'll be there momentarily." His security entourage formed an impenetrable circle around him as he braced himself to travel the short distance from the executive office building to the White House. As they pushed open the doors of the building, he was pleased to see a car was already waiting for him at the curb. They would only have to take a few steps.

A chorus of "Is it true?," Vice President Leader, over here," and "Do you have any comments on Senator Bracken or the current allegations?" sounded as Gregory, the leader of his pack, kept pushing his way through the sea of reporters.

"The Vice President has no comment," he kept repeating until finally, blessedly, they were in the car.

Leader steeled himself for the meeting to come as he made his way through the halls of the White House. It seemed as though every single member of the White House staff has stopped to gawk as they passed. Finally, he reached his destination. The President's Senior Advisor opened the door to the Oval Office looking quite grave. "President Wheeler is expecting you," he said quietly before excusing himself.

The President was sitting at his desk staring out the window, his back towards the entrance and the Vice President. "Sir, these allegations are…" Leader started.

"Stop," President Andrew Wheeler exclaimed before Leader had a chance to say anymore. As he turned to face Leader, he did his best to school his angry features. "I asked for the truth about Senator Bracken, and I asked you to handle this before it turned into a media circus. Obviously, you were unable to do either. So, I am going to ask you again. Start at the beginning and tell me everything."

* * *

Using some paper Castle had retrieved from the front desk, Hunt was drawing a rudimentary map of the building where Jim was being held based on information they could find about the abandoned property online. He wanted Kate to stay behind in the hotel room where she'd be safe, but the woman was having none of it. Broken foot or not, she was going to be on the front lines.

"The goal is to rescue your dad and then get out of the city. Once we're in a safer location about an hour, hour and a half outside of Washington, we need to contact this agent. She could be a helpful addition to our team, and we need the evidence she possesses. As far as the media, what's done is done. We'll have to wait and see how the current administration plans to handle this."

The pair nodded and followed Hunt's lead. Hunt had several extra pieces stashed away in his luggage, but when Kate accepted her gun, she was presented with a problem she had not anticipated. With her broken wrist, handling the gun was proving to be very problematic.

"Kate…" Castle started as he watched her struggle.

"No, Castle. If Martha was in that building, if _Alexis_ was in that building, I know exactly what you would do. Aside from you, my dad is the only family I have left. I got him into this mess, and I will get him out." Having delivered the final verdict on the matter, Kate opened the door and headed for the car, the possible consequences be damned.

"Well, that went well," Hunt said, giving his son a sympathetic and amused smile. "Come on, son, let's go before she gets us all killed."

"She's not usually like this," Castle said, halting Hunt in his tracks. "I mean, she is, but…"

"She's usually a little more methodical and a little less emotional? She's under duress, and she's in pain. Cut her some slack."

"I just didn't want you to think…" Castle trailed off as he tried to find the words he wanted to express. Hunt had been absent his entire life. For 42 years, he had to rely on nothing more than his own imagination when it came to his father. Why should he care what Hunt thinks of his future wife? He shouldn't, but he did. He honestly shouldn't have cared what his father thought about anything, but he did. He cared deeply.

"She's extraordinary," Hunt said, putting his son at ease. "Anyone can see that. You did good, kid. Now, let's go rescue her dad and put an end to this so you two can have your happy ending, alright?"


End file.
